UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
AT   LOS  ANGELES 


ROBERT  ERNEST  COWAN 


TRANSACTIONS 


Inmt 


ion 


STATE     OF    CALIFORNIA, 


1874    TO     1876, 


"WITH    CONSTITUTION    AND     BY-LAWS. 


VOL.   I. 


SAN  FRANCISCO: 

'JcBERY  &  COMPAHY,  Steam  Book  and  Job  Printers,  414  Market  Street. 

1876. 


7?X 


PREFACE. 


The  State  of  California  is  about  800  miles  long,  by 
200  miles  wide.  Her  towns  are  widely  separated,  in 
many  instances,  and  being  yet  in  her  infancy  she  has 
few  facilities  for  the  rapid  communication  which  would 
enable  those  pioneers  in  our  profession  to  get  togeth- 
er in  large  numbers,  and  lend  their  help  in  sustaining 
a  medical  society. 

We  have  existed,  as  a  society,  barely  two  years,  but 
•  we  do -not  wish  our  feeble  light  to  be  hid  under  a 
bushel,  and  therefore  venture  to  present  to  the  pro- 

cc 

fession  the  transactions  of  our  small  body,  with  the 
I  hope  that  the  circumstances  may  be  considered  and 
g  we  be  judged  by  our  good  intentions,  rather  than  by 
the  amount  of  work  apparently  done. 

In  behalf  of  the  Pacific  Homoeopathic  Medical  So- 
ciety of  the  State  of  California. 

G.  M.  PEASE, 

General  Secretary. 


f  > 


288186 


STATE    OF    CALIFORNIA, 
DEPARTMENT  OF  STATE. 


SACBAMENTO,  March  3d,  1876. 

I,  THOMAS  BECK,  Secretary  of  State  of  the  State  of  California,  do 
hereby  certify  that  a  copy  of  ARTICLES  OF  INCORPORATION  was  filed 
in  this  office,  on  the  third  day  of  March,  A.  D.  1876,  containing  the  following 
statement  of  facts  : 

I.    That  the  name  of  the  Corporation  is 


PACIFIC  WOMCEOFATHIC    MEDICAL  SOCIETY, 

Or  the  State  of  California. 

2.  That  the  purpose  for  which  it  is  formed  is 

The    Advancement    of    the    Science    of    Medicine    and 

Surgery. 

3.  That  its  principal  place  of  business  is  San  Francisco,  California. 

4.  That  the  term  for  which  it  is  to  exist  is  fifty  (50)  years. 

5.  That  the  number  of  its  Directors  or  Trustees  is  five  (5). 

And  the  names  and  residences  of  those  who  are  to  act   as   Directors   or 
Trustees  until  the  election  of  such  officers  and  their  qualification  are  : 

J.  W.  SELFRIDGE,      -      -  Residence,  Oakland,  Cal. 

H.  H.  INGERSON,    -      -  "          San  Francisco,  C*.. 

J.  J.  CUSHING,       ...  "          Saucelito, 

J.  A.  ALBERTSON,   -      -  "          San  Francisco,   " 

G.  M.  PEASE,     ....  •«  .... 


WITNESS  my  Hand  and  the  Great  Seal  of  State,  at  my 
Office  in  Sacramento,  California,  the  third  day  of  March, 
A.  D.  1876. 

THOMAS  BECK,  Secretary  of  State. 
By  WM.  A.  BECK,  Deputy. 


THE 


PACIFIC  HOMEOPATHIC   MEDICAL  SOCIETY, 


SAN  FRANCISCO,  Cal.,  Aug.  i,  1874. 

Special  meeting  of  Homoeopathic  Physicians  held 
at  Rooms  of  Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 

Present — Drs.  Albertson,  Beakley,  Geary,  Inger- 
son,  Pease,  Selfridge,  Thomas,  and  Wilson. 

Dr.  Selfridge  was  elected  Chairman  and  Dr.  Beak- 
ley  Secretary. 

It  was  moved  by  Dr.  Pease,  and  seconded  by  Dr. 
Geary,  that  it  be  expedient  to  organize  a  medical 
society  to  represent  Homoeopathy  on  the  Pacific 
Coast. 

This  motion  was  carried. 

It  was  also  voted  that  a  committee  of  three  be 
appointed  to  draft  a  Constitution  and  By-laws. 

This  committee  was  made  to  consist  of  Drs.  Pease, 
Albertson,  and  Ingerson. 

The  meeting  adjourned  to  meet  at  the  same  place, 
on  the  8th. 


AUGUST  8th,  1874. 

The  adjourned  meeting  of  the  Homoeopathic  Phy- 
sicians was  held  at  the  rooms  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 

Present — Drs.  Geary,  Thomas,  Knapp,  Pease,  Al- 
bertson, Ingerson,  Selfridge,  and  Beakley. 


0  TRANSACTIONS. 

The  minutes  of  the  former  meeting  were  read  and 
approved. 

The  Chairman  called  for  the  report  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Constitution  and  By-laws. 

Dr.  Pease  read  the  draft  as  prepared  by  the  com- 
mittee. The  Constitution  and  By-laws  were  then 
acted  upon,  article  by  article,  and  accepted  as  a  whole. 

A  Committee  upon  Printing  and  Correspondence 
was  then  chosen,  with  full  powers.  This  committee 
consisted  of  Drs.  Pease,  Thomas,  and  Wilson. 

It  was  voted  to  reconsider  the  vote  by  which  Arti- 
cle III.  of  the  Constitution  was  adopted.  Dr.  Geary 
then  moved  that  the  name  of  Dr.  J.  N.  Eckel  be 
included  in  the  list  of  founders  of  the  society.  The 
Chairman  then  called  Dr.  Knapp  to  the  chair  and 
made  some  lengthy  remarks  in  opposition  to  Dr- 
Geary's  motion ;  after  which  he  resumed  the  chair. 
Remarks  followed  from  several  others  present,  and 
the  motion  of  Dr.  Geary  being  put  to  vote,  was  lost. 
The  grounds  of  objection  being  the  report  that  Dr. 
Eckel  was  not  possessed  of  a  diploma.  The  original 
article  was  then  adopted. 

The  election  of  officers  to  hold  office  until  the 
annual  meeting,  or  until  their  successors  were  elected, 
was  then  held,  resulting  in  the  election  of  Dr.  Sel- 
fridge  as  President,  Dr.  Knapp  Vice- President,  Dr. 
Beakley  General  Secretary,  Dr.  Albertson  Treasurer. 
Drs.  Pease,  Ingerson,  and  Cushing,  Censors. 

Adjourned  to  meet  on  the  first  Wednesday  of  No- 
vember for  the  annual  meeting. 


CONSTITUTION. 


ARTICLE  I.— NAME. 

This  Association  shall  be  called  THE  PACIFIC  HOMOEOPATHIC  MEDICAL 
SOCIETY  OF  THE  STATF.  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

ARTICLE  II.— OBJECT. 

The  object  of  this  Society  shall  be  the  advancement  of  the  science  of  Medicine 
and  Surgery. 

ARTICLE  III.— OF  WHOM  COMPOSED. 

This  Society  shall  be  composed  of  Drs.  J.  M.  Selfridge,  J.  F.  Geary,  J.  A. 
Albertson,  H.  Knapp,  H.  H.  Ingerson,  M.  T.  Wilson,  F.  H.  Thomas,  J.  J. 
Gushing,  J.  N.  Eckel,  J.  S.  Beakley,  and  G.  M.  Pease,  and  such  others  as  may 
from  time  to  time  be  elected,  in  conformity  with  the  By-Laws  of  the  Society. 

ARTICLE  IV.— OFFICERS. 

The  Officers  of  the  Society  shall  be  a  President,  Vice-President,  General 
Secretary,  Treasurer,  and  three  Censors. 

ARTICLE  V. 

The  members  of  this  Society  consider  Homoeopathy  superior  to  any  known 
system  of  medicine,  being  based  upon  the  humane  principle  of  the  ' '  Organon," 
which  says,  "The  highest  and  only  calling  of  the  physician  is  to  heal  the  sick, 
called  curing;"  and  "The  highest  ideal  of  cure  is  speedy,  gentle,  permanent 
restitution  of  health."  We  acknowledge  "  Similia  Similibus  curantur  "  as  the 
only  known  law  of  cure ;  but  we  accept  this  law  as  pertaining  to  and  governing 
the  use  of  DRUGS  ONLY. 

We  beliere  that  it  follows,  from  the  principles  above  stated,  that  we  consider 
it  necessary  for  a  member  of  this  Society  that  he  should  adhere  in  his  practice 
to  the  cardinal  points  of  the  "  Organon  of  the  Healing  art,"/,  e.,  the  selection  of 
the  most  similar  remedy,  and  the  smallest  dose  which,  in  his  judgment,  will  cure. 

Having  determined  the  basis  of  Homoeopathy  and  decided  to  be  governed  by 
its  maxims,  it  follows  that  the  dignity  of  our  responsible  position  as  a  society  of 
Homoeopathic  physicians  demands  that  those  claiming  the  title  of  Homoeopathic 
physicians  shall  not  be  justified  in  practicing  the  administration  of  drugs  contrary 
to  the  laws  and  maxims  peculiar  to  Homoeopathy. 


8  TRANSACTIONS. 

ARTICLE  VI.— ALTKKATIONS. 

The  Constitution  may  be  altered  or  amended  by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of  the 
members  present  at  any  regular  meeting  of  the  Society  ;  provided,  that  notice  o- 
such  alteration  or  amendment  shall  have  been  presented  in  writing  at  a 
regular  meeting  of  the  Society. 


BY-LAWS. 


ARTICLE  I. — MEETINGS,  WHEN  AND  WHERE. 

The  Society  shall  hold  two  sessions  each  year,  viz :  on  the  second  Wednes- 
day of  May,  which  shall  be  called  the  annual  meeting,  and  on  the  second  Wednes- 
day of  November,  which  shall  be  called  the  semi-annual  meeting.  The  sessions 
shall  be  held  at  such  place  as  may  be  determined  upon  by  a  majority  vote  of 
those  members  present  at  any  regular  meeting. 

SPECIAL  SESSIONS. 

Special  sessions  may  be  called  upon  the  written  application  of  any  five  mem- 
bers, to  the  President,  stating  the  object  of  the  meeting. 

ARTICLE  II.— OFFICEBS,  WHEN  AND  How  CHOSEN. 

The  officers  shall  be  chosen  at  the  annual  meeting,  by  ballot,  to  hold  office 
for  one  year,  or  until  their  successors  are  elected.  In  the  choice  of  officers  a 
plurality  vote  shall  elect  after  the  first  ballot. 

The  officers  of  the  Society  shall  constitute  an  Executive  Committee,  which 
shall  arrange  the  order  of  business  at  the  meetings,  and  attend  to  such  other  busi- 
ness as  is  not  otherwise  provided  for  and  which  may  devolve  upon  it  by  a  vote  of 
the  Society. 

ARTICLE  III.— DUTY  OF  PRESIDENT. 

The  President  shall  preside  at  all  meetings,  preserve  order  therein,  put  all 
questions,  announce  the  decisions,  and  appoint  committees  not  otherwise  ordered. 

ARTICLE  IV.— DOTY  OF  VICE-PRESIDENT. 

The  Vice-President  shall  assist  the  President,  and  in  his  absence  perform 
his  duties. 

ARTICLE  V.— DUTY  OF  SECRETARY. 

The  General  Secretary  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the  meet- 
ings, give  proper  notice  of  the  meetings  of  the  Society,  notify  candidates  of  their 
election,  sign  certificates  of  membership,  answer  all  letters  addressed  to  the 
Society,  and  open  and  maintain  such  correspondence  as  may  tend  to  advance  the 
interests  of  the  Society. 

ARTICLE  VII.— DUTY  OF  TREASURER. 

The  Treasurer  shall  collect  all  moneys  belonging  to  the  Society;  make  all 
necessary  disbursements,  and  report  annually,  in  writing,  and  verbally  whenever 
requested  by  the  Society. 


IO  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ARTICLE  VIII.— DUTY  OF  CENSORS. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Censors  to  examine  the  credentials  of  applicants 
for  membership,  and  report  to  the  Society  for  election  such  as  may  be  found 
properly  qualified. 

ARTICLE  IX.— MEMBERSHIP,  QUALIFICATIONS  FOR. 

Any  person  of  good  moral  character  and  professional  standing,  who  shall 
have  pursued  a  regular  course  of  medical  studies  according  to  the  requirements 
of  any  respectable  medical  college,  and  received  his  diploma  therefor,  and  who 
shall  have  been  recommended  by  the  Censors,  may  become  eligible  to  member- 
ship in  this  Society. 

ARTICLE   X.— ELECTION  OF  MEMBERS. 

The  election  of  members  shall  be  by  ballot,  and  shall  require  a  two  thirds 
vote  of  the  members  present.  Should  there  exist  any  reasons  why  a  person 
should  not  join  the  Society,  which  may  not  be  known  to  the  Censors,  it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  any  member,  who  may  know  of  them,  to  give  notice  to  the  Censors 
in  writing,  giving  the  reasons  in  full,  and  signing  his  name  thereto,  or  to  the  So- 
ciety in  case  it  was  not  known  beforehand  that  sugh  person  intended  presenting 
himself  for  membership.  In  which  latter  case  the  Society  may  go  into  secret 
session  before  proceeding  to  vote  upon  the  name  of  such  candidate,  and  it  shall 
then  be  the  duty  of  the  member  who  has  aught  against  the  candidate  to  clearly 
and  fully  state  it  to  the  Society,  that  an  intelligent  vote  be  cast  or  the  candidate 
have  leave  to  withdraw  his  name. 

ARTICLE  XI. — WITHDRAWAL  AND  REINSTATEMENT. 

Every  member,  in  good  standing,  shall  have  the  privilege  of  withdrawing  from 
the  Society,  by  giving  notice  in  writing  of  such  intention  and  paying  all  arrearages 
due  the  Society.  Any  person  who  has  resigned  his  membership  may,  on 
application  in  writing,  be  reinstated  by  a  two  thirds  vote  of  the  members  present 
at  any  regular  meeting. 

ARTICLE  XII.— EXPULSION  UPON  CHARGES. 

Any  member  may  be  expelled  from  the  Society,  or,  having  resigned  his  mem- 
bership, may  be  deprived  of  his  privileges,  by  a  two  thirds  vote  of  the  members 
present  at  any  regular  meeting,  or  meeting  adjourned  for  that  purpose  ;  provided, 
the  charge  or  charges  against  him  have  been  presented  to  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee in  writing,  and  he  has  been  notified  of  the  same  by  the  Secretary,  and  an 
opportunity  has  thereby  been  given  him  to  make  his  defense  before  the  Society: 

first.  —  For  any  gross  or  notorious  immorality  or  infamous  crime  under  the 
laws  of  the  land. 

Second. — For  any  attempt  to  subvert  the  objects  or  injure  the  reputation  of 
the  Society. 

Third.— For  advertising  or  publicly  vending  any   e  cret  nostrum. 

Fourth.— For  furnishing  to  any  person,  or  presenting  in  his  own  behalf,  a  false 
certificate  of  studies,  as  a  student  of  medicine,  tending  to  deceive  the  public  or 
the  Censors  of  this  Society. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  II 

Fifth. — Any  other  flagrant  violation  of  the  Code  of  Ethics  of  the  American 
Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  which  we  accept  aa  our  own. 

ARTICLE  XIII.— OBLIGATION  OF  MEMBERS. 

Every  person  who  becomes  a  member  is  understood  to  take  upon  himself  an 
obligation  to  communicate  to  the  Society  any  discoveries  he  shall  have  made 
relating  to  the  science  of  medicine  or  surgery,  and  on  his  refusal  to  do  so  he  shall 
be  subject  to  such  censure  as  the  Society,  by  a  two  thirds  vote  of  the  members 
present,  may  inflict. 

ARTICLE  XIV.— BUREAUS. 

At  the  annual  meeting  the  President  shall  appoint  bureaus,  of  not  less  than 
three  members  each,  upon  the  following  subjects  :  Upon  Materia  Medica,  Phar- 
macy and  Provings ;  upon  Clinical  Medicine ;  upon  Obstetrics  and  Diseases  of 
Women  and  Children ;  upon  Surgery — general  and  ophthalmic;  Anatomy,  Physi- 
ology, and  Hygiene  ;  upon  Organization,  Registration,  and  Statistics  ;  and  upon 
any  other  subject  which  may  be  deemed  necessary,  by  a  two  thirds  vote  of  the 
members  present  at  any  regular  meeting. 

ARTICLE  XV.— DUTY  OF  THE  BUBBAUS. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  bureaus  to  collect  all  facts  relating  to  their 
branches  and  of  interest  to  the  profession,  and  render  reports  at  the  meetings  of 
the  Society. 

ARTICLE  XVI.— VACANCIES  IN  THE  BUREAUS. 

The  Chairman  shall  have  power  to  fill  any  vacancy  that  may  occur  in  his 
bureau,  and  shall  notify  the  Secretary  of  the  fact. 

ARTICLE   XVII.— ASSESSMENTS — WHEN  A  MEMBER— ABREABS  IN  ASSESS- 
MENTS. 

Each  member  of  the  Society  shall  pay  an  annual  assessment  of  $3.00,  and 
such  additional  -assessment  as  shall  be  voted  at  any  regular  meeting,  and  no 
person  shall  be  considered  a  member  of  the  Society  until  he  shall  have  signed  the 
Constitution  and  By-laws  and  paid  the  annual  assessment.  Any  member  more 
than  two  years  in  arrears  upon  assessments  shall  be  considered  as  having  with- 
drawn from  the  Society,  and  cannot  longer  exercise  any  of  the  rights  of  member- 
ship. 

ARTICLE  XVIII.— QUOBUM. 
Six  members  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business. 

ARTICLE  XIX.— ALTERATIONS. 

The  By-laws  may  be  altered  or  amended  under  the  same  conditions  as  are 
provided  for  the  alteration  or  amendment  of  the  Constitution. 


12  TRANSACTIONS. 

NOVEMBER  4th,  1874. 

The  Pacific  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  held 
its  first  annual  session  at  the  rooms  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association,  at  8  p.  M.  There  were 
present  Drs.  Geary,  Ingerson,  Thomas,  Knapp,  Al- 
bertson,  Pease,  Wilson,  and  Beakley. 

The  records  of  the  last  meeting  for  formation  were 
read  and  approved.  The  report  of  the  Committee  on 
Printing  and  Correspondence  was  accepted. 

Dr.  Geary  proposed  that  the  name  of  Dr.  J.  N. 
Eckel  be  considered  as  one  'of  the  founders  of  the 
Society,  supporting  his  motion  with  remarks  to  some 
length,  in  which  he  stated  that  Dr.  Eckel  was  pos- 
sessed of  a  diploma  from  a  medical  college.  Dr, 
Pease  said  that,  with  the  explanation  of  Dr.  Geary, 
he  would  second  the  motion  of  Dr.  Geary. 

Upon  being  put  to  vote  it  was  carried  unanimously. 

Dr.  Pease  then  moved  that  the  Secretary  be  in- 
structed to  notify  Dr.  Eckel  that,  on  account  of  state- 
ments made  by  Dr.  Geary,  he  had  been  unanimously 
elected  as  one  of  the  founders  of  the  society.  The 
Constitution  and  By-laws  were  then  signed  by  those 
present,  and  was  followed  by  the  election  of  officers 
for  the  ensuing  year,  resulting  as  follows :  for  Presi- 
dent, Dr.  J.  J.  Gushing  ;  for  Vice-President,  Dr.  J.  M. 
Selfridge  ;  for  General  Secretary,  Dr.  G.  M.  Pease ; 
for  Treasurer,  Dr.  J.  A.  Albertson ;  for  Censors,  Drs. 
Geary,  Ingerson,  and  Knapp. 

A  paper  upon  the  medical  use  of  colored  glass  was 
presented  and  read  before  the  Society  by  Dr.  G.  M. 
Pease. 

The  Society  then  adjourned. 


MEDICAL  USE  OF  COLORED  GLASS. 

BY  G.  M.  PEASE,  M.  D.,  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

Fellows  of  Pacific  Homceopathic  Medical  Society: — 
At  this  our  first  annual  meeting,  let  us  firmly 
promise  each  other  and  ourselves  that  we  will  do  all 
in  our  power  to  advance  the  science  of  healing  the 
sick,  and  will  strive  to  investigate  any  channel  which 
may  seem  to  be  opened  to  us  in  that  direction.  And, 
further,  let  us,  each  and  all,  seek  after  new  channels. 
The  old  routinist  may  say :  "  There  are  ways  enough 
already  for  healing  the  sick,  and  I  have  good  success 
with  my  patients ;  what  is  the  use  in  bothering  over 
a  lot  of  new-fangled  notions  and  theories  which  may 
be  the  invention  of  some  visionary  mind  ?" 

Well,  it  may  be  we  have  ways  enough,  perhaps  too 
many,  for  really  there  is  but  one  way,  and  that  the 
right  way;  but  the  methods  of  reaching  the  right 
path  may  be  many,  and  yet  all  be  good.  How  well 
we  all  know  the  difficulty  we  have  in  treating,  not  to 
say  curing,  our  consumptives,  our  nervous  diseases, 
and  a  thousand  and  one  chronic  ailments.  Would 
we  not  gladly  embrace  any  new  course  of  procedure 
that  gave  promise  of  better  success  in  those  direc- 
tions. But  how  shall  we  find  a  better  way  than  we 
now  have  and  follow  ?  Let  us  each  give  the  subject 
thought  and  study ;  examine  more  carefully  the  laws 
of  Nature  ;  see  how  she  does  her  work.  We  are  all 


14  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

children  of  Nature;  why  not  copy  after  her?  She 
does  all  things  well,  and  why  might  not  her  children  ? 

Newton  was  a  child  of  Nature,,  and  he  watched  her 
ways  and  studied  her  laws,  and  it  resulted  in  knowl- 
edge for  the  coming  generations.  The  law  of  grav- 
itation existed  before  Newton  was  born  ;  but  he  read 
the  law  and  interpreted  it  for  our  benefit.  The  use 
of  electricity  for  the  service  of  man  might  have  been 
ascertained  long  years  before  Franklin's  time ;  but 
others  had  never  properly  studied  the  book  which 
was  ever  open  before  them.  And  so  I  might  occupy 
your  time  with  numerous  examples  of  the  benefits  to 
be  gained  by  closely  observing  the  working  of  Na- 
ture's laws ;  but  I  will  only  add  one  more,  the  result 
of  which  is  of  interest  to  us  all. 

Hahnemann  was  thoroughly  educated  as  a  physician 
of  the  old  school,  and  for  awhile  practiced  his  pro- 
fession, and,  in  fact,  acquired  notoriety  for  his  skill ; 
but  he  was  not  satisfied  with  the  loose  way  which 
then  prevailed  of  ministering  to  the  sick,  and  he  began 
the  close  study  of  Nature.  He  thought  there  ought 
to  be  a  law,  and  he  was  determined  to  turn  the  pages 
until  he  found  it.  The  results  we  all  know,  as  do  so 
many  thousands,  aye  millions,  who  have  reaped  the 
benefits  of  that  study  to  which  he  devoted  so  much 
time. 

We  may  not  all  be  Hahnemanns,  but  we  may,  like 
him,  try  to  benefit  our  fellow-men  in  some  way  that 
shall  bring  down  praises  upon  our  memories. 

If  we  are  bent  upon  the  acquisition  of  the  almighty 
dollar  alone,  we  will  go  on  in  the  paths  that  are  already 
laid  out  and  well-beaten  before  us.  Many  have  opened 
up  to  the  world  a  new  and  valuable  project  or  scien- 
tific law,  who  have  perhaps  been  entirely  wrong  in 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  15 

the  start ;  but  the  mere  fact  of  being  wrong  has  led 
to  the  right  in  the  end.  So,  though  we  may  not  be 
right  ourselves,  in  some  new  road,  yet  others  seeing 
our  endeavors,  will  come  and  help  us,  and  the  result 
will  be  good.  Doubtless  many,  if  not  all  of  us,  have 
frequently  revolved  in  our  minds  projects  which,  if 
tested  by  time  and  experiment,  would  be  of  vast  im- 
portance to  the  world  ;  but  which,  from  our  own 
timidity  or  lack  of  confidence,  have  never  been  more 
than  thought  of  or  sparingly  practiced.  Let  us  tell 
our  theories  to  one  another;  think  and  talk  them 
over,  and  possibly  they  may  be  of  some  use,  and  if 
they  are  not  valuable,  we  will  know  that  we  did  not 
strive  to  hide  our  light  under  a  bushel.  What  if  we 
do  make  mistakes  in-our  theories,  we  are  not  Solons, 
and  the  mantle  of  chanty  will  hang  about  our  shoul- 
ders the  more  closely  as  we  strive  the  more  to  benefit 
others.  Those  who  are  at  heart  our  friends  will  not 
ridicule  a  new  idea,  even  though  a  wrong  one,  and 
those  who  are  enemies  cannot  {jurt  us  any  more  be- 
cause we  are  frank  in  our  good  endeavors.  Let  us 
remember,  in  short,  that  it  is  through  mistakes  and 
failures  that  the  greatest  good  has  many  times  been 
accomplished — that  good  results  are  arrived  at  and 
fixed  laws  ascertained  negatively. 

With  this  introduction,  permit  me  to  bring  forward 
an  idea  over  which  I  have  spent  much  thought  and 
many  times  put  in  practice,  and  I  will  support  it  by 
a  brief  report  of  cases  and  their  results. 

In  the  fall  of  1863,  while  absent  from  the  army 
upon  sick  leave,  I  used  to  frequent  the  photographic 
studio  of  a  friend,  because  I  was  interested  in  the  art 
as  an  amateur.  The  operating  room  was  lighted 
through  a  large  skylight  of  light-blue  glass,  and  the 


1 6  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

walls  of  the  room  were  tinted  of  the  same  color. 
After  an  hour  or  two  spent  in  this  room  I  always  felt 
better,  and  mentioned  it  to  my  father,  claiming  that 
I  thought  the  peculiar  light  had  something  to  do  with 
it ;  but  he  thought  it  was  probably  the  smell  of  the 
chemicals.  The  idea  that  suggested  itself  to  me  was 
pondered  over  many  a  time  and  oft,  and  upon  my 
resumption  of  private  practice  in  1864  I  determined 
to  take  the  first  opportunity  of  experimenting  with 
blue  light.  My  first  experiment  was  upon  a  con- 
firmed invalid,  suffering  from,  nobody-  knew  what.  I 
obtained  some  blue  glass,  and  asked  her  to  sit  in  the 
light  of  it  as  much  as  possible.  After  a  few  weeks 
she  was  very  decidedly  improved,  and  she  continued 
the  use  of  the  glass  until  she  was  entirely  well,  and, 
for  aught  I  know,  uses  it  to  this  day.  While  treating 
this  case,  I  noticed  that  the  light  was  not  very  pleas- 
ant to  the  eyes  when  thrown  upon  the  walls  and  ob- 
jects in  the  room,  and  with  the  next  experiment  I 
had  the  panes  alternated  with  clear  glass,  and  found 
the  light  more  pleasant,  but  still  not  perfect,  although 
my  patient  did  exceedingly  well.  This  case  was  one 
of  chronic  bronchitis.  Another  time,  I  obtained  a 
blue  with  the  mixture  of  a  little  red,  making  a  light 
violet  color,  and  the  light  from  this  was  very  pleasant. 
I  now  thought  I  had  found  the  color,  for  my  patients 
improved  much  faster,  apparently,  than  under  the 
clear  blue  light.  For  several  years  I  advised  this 
glass  to  patients  troubled  with  pulmonary  difficulties, 
obscure  chronic  ailments,  nervous  diseases,  and  those 
suffering  from  nervous  injuries. 

One  lady  who  had  been  very  severely  injured  by 
the  telescoping  of  the  cars  at  Revere,  Mass.,  and  who 
was  unable  to  sit  up  in  bed  without  help,  was  for  a 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC   MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  1 7 

long  time  kept  under  the  influence  of  the  violet  light. 
This  patient  had  been  examined  by  experts  employed 
by  the  railroad  company,  on  account  of  a  suit  entered 
.  by  her  for  damages,  and  they  had  agreed  that  she 
must  be  bed-ridden  during  the  rest  of  her  life.  As  I 
have  said,  she  was  placed  under  this  light,  and  after  a 
few  weeks  she  was  able  to  move  about  the  bed  very 
easily.  In  a  few  months  she  got  the  use  of  her  legs 
so  as  to  move  from  the  bed  to  a  chair  placed  near  her, 
and  now  is  able  to  go  about  the  house  and  attend  to 
her  ordinary  household  duties.  At  one  time,  wishing 
to  test  the  value  of  the  glass,  I  caused  it  to  be  re- 
moved for  a  short  time,  when  she  begged  to  be  per- 
mitted to  use  it  again,  as  she  did  not  feel  as  well 
without  it. 

A  young  lady  aged  about  17  had  an  attack  of 
typhoid  fever,  so  I  was  informed,  from  which  she 
recovered  but  slowly.  Subsequently  she  made  a  visit 
to  her  brother,  a  physician,  where  she  was  taken  sick, 
and  as  soon  as  able  she  was  sent  home,  as  he  pro- 
nounced her  lungs  in  a  very  bad  condition.  She  was 
recommended  to  try  Dr.  Bowditch,  a  noted  specialist 
in  lung  diseases,  as  a  last  resort.  After  this  I  first 
saw  her.  The  lungs  truly  were  in  a  very  diseased 
condition,  and  there  seemed  no  chance  to  save  her 
life,  but  I  thought  I  would  try  the  glass  cure.  I  in- 
structed the  mother  as  to  the  color  of  the  glass,  and 
prescribed  thefemedy  which  seemed  to  bear  best  upon 
the  case.  As  the  patient  did  not  live  in  my  own  city 
I  did  not  call  upon  her,  but  received  her  at  my  office. 
After  a  short  time  she  began  to  improve,  the  cough 
became  less,  and  her  strength  greater,  and  in  a  few 
months  she  was  entirely  well.  It  was  not  until  some- 
time after  that  I  saw  the  glass  under  the  light  of 


1 8  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

which  she  had  been  sitting  and  receiving  the  rays  of 
the  sun.  I  then  found  it  a  much  redder  color  than  I 
had  ever  before  used,  and  I  found  the  light  even  pleas- 
anter  than  the  more  blueish  color  previously  employed. 
I  then  carefully  watched  Nature,  if  perchance  I  might 
find  that  light  more  common.  And  here  let  me  say 
that  I  have  very  much  strengthened  my  idea  of  the 
blue  light  by  observing  Nature.  Did  I  not  see  that 
our  very  surrounding  atmosphere  was  blue  ?  No 
matter  whether  I  looked  at  it  by  night  or  by  day,  still 
it  was  blue.  Was  it  not  true  that  the  sun's  light  came 
to  us  through  this  blue  atmosphere,  and  was  not  blue 
the  prevailing  color  in  everything  around  me  ?  Wan- 
dering in  the  fields  and  looking  off,  was  not  everything 
of  a  blueish  tinge  ?  Why  then,  if  Nature  gave  us  a 
blue  light  which  was  ample  for  us  in  health,  might 
we  not  intensify  that  blue  light  to  meet  the  demands 
of  a  diseased  condition  ?  As  I  have  said,  I  watched 
Nature  more  carefully  to  see  if  more  red  could  be  ob- 
served, when  surely  I  found  that  my  eye  had  not  been 
properly  trained  before,  and  I  now  saw  very  much 
more  than  formerly.  In  each  of  my  experiments  I 
have  noticed  that  the  more  red  the  more  rapid  has 
been  the  progress  of  the  patients  under  the  light,  and 
yet  it  has  seemed  necessary  to  preserve  the  distinct 
blue  color  in  connection  with  the  red. 

Experiments  made  upon  animals  by  Prof.  Pfeiffer 
demonstrate  the  value  of  red  glass  in  preference  to 
clear  glass,  but  I  am  not  aware  that  the  professor  has 
ever  used  a  mixture  of  the  blue  and  red.  A  few  years 
ago  General  Pleasanton  experimented  with  blue  glass 
upon  the  vegetable  kingdom,  and  found  that  in  a  given 
time  grape-cuttings  produced  a  very  much  larger 
yield  under  blue  glass  than  they  did  under  either  clear 
or  white  glass. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  1 9 

I  might  illustrate  the  value  of  the  glass  treatment 
with  many  more  cases,  but  enough  have  already  been 
mentioned  to  give  the  range  of  diseases  to  which  it 
has  already  shown  itself  applicable.  I  have  now 
under  treatment  a  case  of  paralysis,  one  of  phthisis* 
and  one  of  chronic  enlargement  of  the  liver,  with 
frequent  discharges  of  renal  calculi,  all  of  which  are 
very  much  benefited  thus  far.  I  can  not  claim  that 
the  remedies  used  are  so  remarkably  well  adapted  to 
each  case  as  to  cause  the  very  decided  benefits  thus 
noticeable,  but  I  do  think  the  influence  of  the  rays  of 
the  sun,  as  received  after  passing  through  the  purple 
or  violet-colored  glass,  have  much  to  do  with  the  suc- 
cess of  the  cases. 

My  method  is  to  advise  the  patient  to  sit  or  lie  so 
the  light  can  fall  upon  him  as  much  as  possible,  and 
for  as  long  a  time  as  possible.  In  one  or  two  instan- 
ces I  have  noticed  that  the  effect  seemed  too  stimulat 
ing  at  first  and  the  patient  could  not  bear  the  light  very 
long  at  a  time,  but  this  soon  wore  off,  and  the  patient 
was  only  too  glad  when  the  next  day  came,  for  the  sun 
bath. 

We  all  know  that  the  sun  is  of  great  value  to  all 
living  creation,  and  especially  in  this  city,  is  it  very 
noticeable  that  everyone  wants  and  feels  the  need  of 
the  sun. 

I  have  been  in  the  receipt  of  letters  from  physicians 
in  the  East  asking  for  more  particulars  respecting  the 
glass  treatment.  I  have  never  myself  published  any 
facts  concerning  which  I  have  now  spoken,  but  others 
have  done  so  for  me,  and  it  seems  to  meet  with  favor 
from  men  of  an  inquiring  mind,  and  lately  I  have  no- 
ticed two  newspaper  articles  referring  to  my  experi- 
ments, and  urging  the  further  investigation  of  the  sub- 


2O  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ject.  After  ten  years  of  experiment  and  thought  I 
have  at  last  been  emboldened  to  openly  proclaim  my 
belief  in  the  efficacy  of  this  sun  treatment,  and  request 
that  each  of  us  will  try  the  experiment  upon  such  cases 
as  may  seem  best  suited  to  thoroughly  give  us  either 
positive  or  negative  results.  I  do  not  mean  to  con- 
vey the  idea  that  all  cases  of  phthisis  can  be  cured  by 
this  treatment,  but  I  do  think  they  may  be  made  more 
comfortable.  Neither  would  I  trust  to  the  sun  alone 
for  treatment,  for  it  is  our  duty  to  stick  to  well-tried 
and  proven  remedies  rather  than  risk  the  lives  of  our 
patients  in  the  trial  of  what  may  be  as  yet  of  uncer- 
tain benefit. 

Let  me  not  be  considered  as  visionary  in  my  obser- 
vations, but  rather  let  us  accept  the  motto,  In  certis 
anitas,  in  dubiis  libertas,  in  omnibus  charitas,  and  let 
us  still  further  "  prove  all  things,  holding  fast  to  that 
which  is  good." 

The  results  of  experiments  in  the  direction  suggest- 
ed, whether  favorable  or  unfavorable,  I  shall  at  any 
time  be  pleased  to  have  reported  to  me. 

Since  the  above  was  written  I  have  been  shown  a 
paper  from  which  I  make  the  following  extract : 

"  The  paper  also  mentioned  a  case  of  the  wife  of  a 
Philadelphia  physician  who  had  for  some  time  been 
suffering  from  a  complication  of  disorders  which  had 
baffled  the  skill  of  her  physicians,  and  who,  on  the 
suggestion  of  General  Pleasanton,  tried  -the  following 
plan  :  Every  other  pane  of  glass  in  one  of  the  windows 
of  the  patient's  room  was  removed  and  blue  glass  sub- 
stituted, and  the  patient  required  to  expose  her  back 
and  spine  to  the  action  of  the  combined  blue  and 
white  lights  for  thirty  minutes  each  day,  at  the  same 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  21 

hour.  At  the  commencement  of  the  treatment  she 
was  unable  to  sleep  or  eat,  was  in  a  miserable  condition 
and  wasting  rapidly.  At  the  end  of  ten  days  the  pains 
in  her  back  were  less,  her  hair  had  commenced  grow- 
Jng  thickly,  and  there  was  a  marked  improvement  in 
her  general  condition.  In  three  weeks  she  was  almost 
entirely  well." 

This  extract  I  have  quoted  from  the  Druggists  Cir- 
cular for  July,  1873,  and  present  it  as  one  item  cor- 
roborating my  own  researches  and  experiments. 


22  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

MAY  5th,  1875. 

Pursuant  to  the  call  of  the  Secretary,  the  semi- 
annual session  of  the  Pacific  Homoeopathic  Medical 
Society  convened  in  the  hall  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  at  ten  o'clock  A.  M. 

There  were  present  the  following  members :  Drs. 
Albertson,  Knapp,  Gushing,  Thomas,  Geary,  Pease, 
Eckel,  Wilson,  Selfridge,  Ingerson  and  Beakley. 

The  President,  Dr.  J.  J.  Gushing,  occupied  the  chair, 
and,  after  calling  the  meeting  to  order,  requested  the 
reading  of  the  records  of  the  last  session.  As  no 
objections  were  made  to  the  records  as  read  by  the 
Secretary,  they  stood  approved. 

The  following  were  then  proposed  for  membership  : 
L.  E.  Cross,  M.  D.,  of  Stockton,  who  graduated  from 
the  Horn.  Med.  College  of  Missouri,  in  1872 ;  W.  A. 
Hughson,  M.  D.,  of  Sacramento,  and  J.  D.  M.  Crock- 
well,  M.  D.,  of  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

Upon  the  recommendation  of  the  Censors,  Drs. 
Cross,  Hughson,  and  Liliencrantz  were  elected  mem- 
bers, and  Drs.  Cross  and  Liliencrantz  forthwith  sign- 
ed the  Constitution  and  By-laws,  and  paid  their  assess- 
ments. 

Dr.  Albertson  spoke  concerning  the  fact  of  the  ap- 
pointing of  Dr.  E.  J.  Eraser,  by  the  American  Institute 
of  Homoeopathy,  upon  the  Committee  of  the  World's 
Homoeopathic  Convention,  urging  that  Dr.  Eraser 
was  not  a  fit  man  to  represent  Homoeopathy  for  this 
State,  and  moved  that  a  committee  «be  appointed  to 
report  as  to  what  should  be  done  in  this  matter. 

Dr.  Pease  read  a  letter  from  Dr.  Pemberton  Dudley, 
of  Philadelphia,  which  referred  to  the  appointment  of 
Dr.  Eraser,  and  doubting  the  power  of  the  committee 
to  remove  Dr.  F. ;  also  doubting  the  feasibility  of  such 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  2$ 

removal,  on  the  ground  of  a  supposed  existence  of 
two  factions  among  the  Homoeopathic  Physicians  on 
this  coast,  and  the  probability  that  no  one  could  be 
put  upon  the  committee  in  his  place  who  would  be 
acceptable  to  all  parties.  He  also  said  he  was  inform- 
ed that  whatever  violations  of  the  Code  of  Ethics  Dr. 
Eraser  may  have  been  guilty  of,  he  had  now  reformed 
and  was  endeavoring  to  uphold  the  honor  of  the  pro- 
fession. 

Dr.  Geary  made  some  remarks,  in  which  he  said  a 
young  offender  might  reform,  but  when  a  man  of  more 
advanced  age,  and  who  deliberately  violated  all  codes, 
talked  of  reformation,  he  did  not  believe  in  it.  He 
instanced  facts  of  almost  daily  and  recent  occurrence, 
in  which  the  Code  of  Ethics  were  being  violated,  in 
addition  to  older  and  flagrant  violations,  which  he 
recited  at  some  length.  Dr.  Geary  did  not  wish  to 
belong  to  a  society  that  would  receive  Dr.  Eraser  as 
a  member. 

Dr.  Eckel  said  he  could  bear  witness  to  some  of  the 
facts  stated  by  Dr.  Geary. 

Dr.  Cushing  thought  we  ought,  in  the  infancy  of 
this  Society,  to  spend  some  time  in  purification,  and 
take  such  action  as  should  place  the  Society  on  a  firm 
foundation. 

Dr.  Geary  wished  to  add  that  it  was  not  on  account 
of  any  personal  feeling  against  Dr.  Eraser  he  had 
spoken,  but  because  of  his  unprofessional  conduct. 
He  instanced  his  pretended  cures  of  cancer  by  a  paste 
of  his  own  manufacture,  and  of  his  advertisements  of 
such  pretended  cures. 

The  question  being  called  for,  the  motion  of  Dr. 
Albertson  was  put  by  the  President,  and,  upon  vote, 
was  unanimously  carried. 


24  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

The  Chair  appointed  Drs.  Geary,  Albertson,  and 
Pease  as  this  committee.  Dr.  Albertson  read  some 
resolutions  as  a  suggestion  for  the  committee.  Dr. 
Geary  did  not  favor  them,  as  it  appeared  too  much  as 
if  a  leader  was  recognized  in  their  framing. 

Dr.  Pease  moved  that  in  consequence  of  the  limited 
time  in  which  to  consider  the  matter  the  motion  of 
Dr.  Albertson  be  so  amended  that  the  committee 
have  full  powers  to  present  the  matter  to  the  Institute 
in  behalf  of  the  Society.  This  motion  was  carried. 

Dr.  Gushing,  in  addressing  the  Society,  tendered 
his  thanks  for  the  honor  shown  him  by  choosing  him 
as  its  first  President.  He  considered  this  the  first 
effort  at  forming  a  society  upon  a  sound  basis  that 
has  ever  been  made  upon  this  coast,  and  congratulat- 
ed the  Society  upon  the  success  attending  it.  He 
thought  the  right  course  had  been  adopted  of  making 
it  a  society  of  thoroughly  good  men.  He  could  look 
with  pleasure  upon  the  growth  of  Homoeopathy  on 
this  coast  during  the  twenty-four  and  a  half  years  he 
had  been  in  practice  here,  but  he  had  been  obliged  to 
fight,  and  although  the  new-comers  would  not  have  as 
much  opposition,  still  they  ought  to  fight  for  further 
advancement,  to  make  it  not  only  popular  but  respect- 
able. He  thought  this  might  almost  be  considered 
his  valedictory,  as  he  is  about  retiring  from  active 
practice. 

Dr.  Selfridge  read  a  report  of  a  severe  and  long- 
standing case  of  hemorrhoides,  cured  with  sEsculus 
Hippocasta  num. 

Dr.  Gushing  was  pleased  with  the  report  because  it 
was  the  record  of  a  case  cured  with  a  single  remedy. 

Dr.  Geary  had  used  yEsculus  with  great  benefit,  but 
in  cases  of  acute  bleeding  piles  he  has  used  Hamamelis 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  2$ 

Virginica^  In  cases  of  great  inflammation  and  bleed- 
ing he  advises  the  use  of  hot  fomentations,  with  cold 
water  after  stool. 

Dr.  Selfridge  remarked  that  one  reason  he  had  for 
the  choice  of  the  remedy  was  that  the  patient  felt  as 
if  the  gut  were  turned  inside  out.  Those  who  have 
lived  where  the  "  buckeye  "  grows,  often  see  the  cat- 
tle which  eat  it  with  the  gut  protruding. 

Dr.  Pease  read  a  paper  upon  "  Ovarian  Diseases," 
in  which  he  had  more  particular  reference  to  tumors 
of  the  ovary  and  the  methods  of  operating  upon  them.. 

Dr.  Selfridge  thought  Dr.  Pease  was  a  little  too 
sweeping  in  his  statement  that  unless  the  pus  result- 
ing from  an  ovarian  abscess  was  discharged  through, 
the  Fallopian  tubes,  and  so  find  its  way  out,  that  death- 
would  be  the  result,  as  he  had  seen  a  case  in  which 
adhesion  had  occurred  at  the  sigmoid  flexure  and  the 
discharge  had  made  its  exit  through  the  bowels.  He. 
related  a  case  which  had  been  pronounced  ovarian 
tumor  by  an  Allopathic  physician  and  an  operation, 
solicited,  but  upon  examination  he  decided  it  to  be 
pregnancy,  which  diagnosis  was  afterward  found  to 
be  correct,  and  the  patient  was  glad  she  changed 
physicians.  ( 

Dr.  Pease,  in  answer  to  Dr.  Selfridge,  said  that  ini 
preparing  his  paper  he  had  found  so  much  ground 
necessary  to  be  gone  over  that  he  had  mentioned  only 
the  more  common  way  of  exit  for  the  pus. 

Dr.  Eckel  thought  the  writer  was  a  little  old-fash- 
ioned in  retaining  the  use  of  the  term  hydatids,  as  it 
was  more  properly  known  now  as  polypus. 

At  this  point  the  meeting  adjourned  to  meet  in  the 
Ladies' Parlor  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  Association,  at  eight 
o'clock  P.  M. 


26  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

According  to  adjournment  the  Society  met  at  eight 
o'clock  P.  M. 

Vice-President  Dr.   Selfridge    in  the  Chair. 

There  were  present,  Drs.  Eckel,  Geary,  Knapp, 
Selfridge,  Ingerson,  Wilson,  Albertson,  Cross,  Lilien- 
crantz,  and  Pease. 

Discussion  upon  the  last  paper  of  the  morning  ses- 
sion was  resumed. 

Dr.  Geary  asking  for  a  more  particular  description 
of  the  original  method  of  treating  the  pedicle  after  the 
removal  of  an  ovarian  tumor. 

Dr.  Pease  explained  that  he  used  a  ligature  of  silk- 
worm  gut  to  the  arteries,  cutting  them  close  to  the 
knot  and  dropping  the  pedicle  within  the  cavity,  and 
closing  the  external  wound  with  sutures,  covering  it 
with  muslin  saturated  with  colodion  so  as  to  make  it 
air-tight.  The  gut  of  the  silk-worm  is  a  perfectly 
pure  animal  tissue,  there  being  only  enough  for  one 
or  two  ligatures  in  each  gut.  He  believed  it  to  be  the 
end  of  the  spinning  of  the  worm  ;  after  he  has  done 
his  work  the  gut  is  drawn  out  and  washed  clean  and 
dried.  The  silk-worm  gut  does  not  act  as  a  foreign 
substance,  but  as  animal  tissue  is  readily  absorbed. 
The  clamp  he  considered  a  barbarous  instrument, 
being  a  weight  upon  the  sensitive  abdomen,  altogether 
useless. 

Dr.  Selfridge  remarked  that,  in  the  early  history  of 
this  country,  many  a  Mexican  had  seemed  to  thrive 
after  the  use  of  common  silk  as  ligatures  in  abdominal 
injuries. 

Dr.  Geary  spoke  of  the  accidental  discovery  of  the 
value  of  the  "old  bath"  of  photographers — iodide  of 
silver — for  applications  to  ulcers  and  in  place  of  the 
more  irritating  nitrate  of  silver. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  2 7 

Desultory  remarks  here  followed  from  several  of 
the  members. 

Dr.  Liliencrantz  then  read  a  paper,  both  interesting 
and  instructive,  upon  "  The  Use  of  Artificial  Aids  in 
Labor." 

Dr.  Selfridge  judged  from  the  paper  that  Dr.  L. 
<iid  not  always  call  counsel  in  cases  of  forcep  delivery. 
He  did  not  often  do  it  himself,  as  he  thought  the 
dread  of  a  consultation,  and  the  idea  of  help  being 
needed,  only  made  the  patient  more  uneasy,  and  un- 
necessarily alarmed  her.  He  is  in  the  habit  of  giving 
€ther  in  instrumental  labor,  and  uses  ether  because 
chloroform  is  not  always  safe  ;  has  never  seen  any  bad 
results  from  the  use  of  ether,  while  he  once  came  near 
having  a  bad  result  from  chloroform.  He  prefers  an 
anaesthetic  because  the  parts  are  relaxed  and  the  for- 
ceps more  easily  applied. 

Dr.  Pease  alluded  to  the  accidents  that  might  arise 
from  a  mixture  of  ether  and  chloroform. 

Dr.  Cross  had  never  seen  bad  results  from  using 
chloroform. 

Dr.  Ingerson  spoke  of  the  occasional  necessity  for 
the  use  of  chloroform,  or  at  least  a  mixture  of  it  with 
<ether,  instead  of  ether  alone. 

Dr.  Eckel  said  that  in  Austria  there  was  a  law  for- 
bidding the  use  of  pure  chloroform. 

Some  desultory  remarks  followed  upon  the  merits 
of  different  anaesthetics. 

Dr.  Geary  has  rarely  used  the  forceps,  though  he 
has  had  some  slow  cases. 

Dr.  Knapp  read  a  paper  upon,  or  a  record  of,  a  case 
of  accidental  proving  of  Podophyllin,  in  which  he  noted 
the  following  symptoms  as  not  recorded  in  any  other 
provings,  viz:  a  very  sweet  taste  in  the  mouth — every- 


28  TRANSACTIONS. 

thing  taken  tasting  sweet ;  a  peculiar  eruption  on  the 
skin,  being  in  appearance  like  "  hives,"  which  appear- 
ed after  scratching,  which  was  provoked  by  an  intol- 
erable itching ;  also,  the  symptom  of  extreme  tender- 
ness of  the  right  ovary.  A  peculiarity  noticed  was  the 
abatement  of  the  worst  symptoms  on  the  third  day, 
and  a  severe  aggravation  on  the  morning  of  the  fourth 
day. 

Dr.  Selfridge  presented  a  paper  upon  "  Fracture  of 
the  Clavicle  and  its  Treatment,"  with  an  illustration 
upon  one  of  the  members  of  an  appliarrce  of  his  own 
invention,  which  seemed  superior  to  all  others  in  use. 

Dr.  Geary  presented  a  paper,  already  given  to  the 
public,  on  a  "  Change  of  Climate  for  the  Sick." 

Dr.  Selfridge  proposed  for  membership  Clinton 
Munson,  M.  D.,  of  Gilroy  —  graduate  of  the  Hahne- 
mann  Medical  College  of  Chicago,  and  J.  E.  Nichols, 
M.  D.,  of  Oakland,  and,  upon  recommendation  of  the 
Censors  and  a  vote  of  the  Society,  the  Secretary  cast 
the  vote  favorable  to  their  election,  and  they  were 
announced  as  elected.  Adjourned, 


HEMORRHOIDS  — WITH  PROLAPSUS  ANI 
— ^ESCULUS  HIPPOCASTANUM. 


BY  J.  M.  SELFRIDGE,  M.  D.,  OAKLAND,  CAL. 


On  the  second  day  of  January,  1871,  Mr.  A.  Basset, 
of  Oakland,  Cal.,  aged  40,  a  stone  cutter  by  trade,  came 
into  my  office  and  gave  me  the  following  history  of 
his  case  : 

"  I  have  the  piles  very  bad.  I  have  been  suffering 
for  a  long  time,  and  have  been  doctoring  for  the  last 
fifteen  months  with  nearly  every  Allopathic  physician 
in  town,  and  they  can't  cure  me.  On  the  contrary,  I 
am  getting  worse.  I  have  great  difficulty  in  having  a 
passage,  and  when  I  do,  my  bowel  turns  inside  out, 
and  is  accompanied  with  great  pain,  which  runs  up 
into  my  back  and  bowels  so  I  have  to  lie  down  for 
three  or  four  hours.  On  this  account  I  can't  have  a 
passage  in  the  mornings  for  if  I  did  I  would  have  to 
lose  half  a  day's  work.  Another  thing  :  my  '  ma- 
nure' is  almost  black  and  so  sticky  that  if  I  take  it  on 
a  shingle  I  can  hardly  throw  it  off." 

These  symptoms  were  so  nearly  like  those  given  in 
the  proving  of  sEsculus  Hippocastanumin.  Hale's  New 
Remedies  that  I  made  the  following  prescription: 
^Esculus  Hip.  2x,  three  pills  every  four  hours.  Use 
one  half  the  usual  amount  of  tobacco  (he  was  an  invet- 
erate chewer  of  the  "  weed"),  and  report  to  me  in  a 
week. 


3<D  TRANSACTIONS. 

January  8th.  He  reports  the  color  and  consistency 
of  his  passages  much  improved;  also,  his  ability  to  pass 
them.  The  same  prescription  was  continued. 

January  22d.  He  reports  himself  well.  He  has 
no  more  piles ;  no  prolapsus  of  the  rectum,  has  his 
passages  in  the  morning  without  pain.  The  only 
remaining  symptom  is  a  slight  feeling  of  heat  after  a 
passage.  He  was  directed  to  continue  the  sEsculu? 
for  a  few  days  longer.  About  a  year  ago  I  inquired 
after  his  health,  and  he  reported  himself  "  all  right.'* 

Thus,  a  case  which  had  resisted  the  purgatives, 
ointments,  suppositories,  and  what  not,  of  those  who 
arrogate  to  themselves  all  the  knowledge  that  is  worth 
having,  was  cured  in  three  weeks  with  the  much- 
despised  little  pill. 


ON  THE  USE  OF  ARTIFICIAL  AIDS  TO 
LABOR. 


BY  A.  LILIENCRANTZ,    M.  D.,  OAKLAND,  CAL. 


MR.  PRESIDENT  AND  GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  SOCIETY  : 

"  The  longer-continued  the  first  stage  of  labor  the 
greater  the  danger  to  mother  and  child"  is  an  obstetric 
law  conceded  as  such  by  writers  and  obstetric  practi- 
tioners of  all  schools  and  all  countries.  Inevitably 
the  question  arises  in  our  minds,  "  What  shall  we  do  to 
shorten  it,  when  continued  beyond  reasonable  limits  ?'* 
I  wish  to  say  a  few  words  as  an  attempt,  in  part,  to 
answer  that  question. 

The  means  at  our  disposal  are  of  two  different  kinds, 
medicinal  and  mechanical.  Among  medicines,  Ergot 
has  been  used  more  extensively  than  any  other,  but  at 
the  present  day  I  think  the  profession  generally  is 
beginning  to  appreciate  the  dangers  and  many  evil 
effects  from  its  administration  with  a  view  to  hasten 
labor.  I  was  taught  to  use  it,  and  did  so,  for  some 
time,  but  of  late  I  hardly  ever  give  it  for  any  other 
purpose  than  to  stop  hemorrhage.  Even  in  post-par- 
tum  hemorrhage,  I  place  less  reliance  upon  it  than  up- 
on the  hand  placed  over  the  pubes,  firmly  grasping  the 
uterus.  But  should  it  be  found  absolutely  necessary 
to  give  this  remedy,  on  purpose  to  stimulate  the  ute- 
rus to  greater  activity,  let  it  be  given  in  doses  of  from 
two  to  three  drops  of  a  reliable  preparation,  and  fre- 


32  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

-quently  repeated,  in  preference  to  more  massive  doses, 
and  I  am  quite  sure  it  will  be  found  to  act  with  much 
more  certainty  and  greater  rapidity.  Many  times  have 
I  seen  massive  doses  forced  into  the  stomach,  remain 
there  for  an  hour,  more  or  less,  and  finally  again  eject- 
ed thence,  having  had  no  effect  whatever  in  furthering 
the  desired  end.  Morphine,  Caulophyllum,  Macrotin, 
Gelseminum  and  several  others  are  all  very  valuable 
according  to  their  several  and  distinct  indications. 
Especially  do  I  like  to  give  the  Macrotin  3x  every 
morning  and  evening  for  about  two  weeks  before  the 
expected  confinement,  having  been  led  to  believe  that 
it  has  the  effect  of  making  the  os  more  easily  dilatable. 
I  have  no  positive  data,  neither  from  my  own  experi- 
ence nor  that  of  others,  to  offer  in  support  of  this  sup- 
position. Any  and  all  medicinal  means  I  think  more 
or  less  unreliable,  and  to  be  considered  chiefly  as 
valuable  auxiliaries. 

Qt\.\\e  position  of  the  lying-in  woman  I  wish  to  say 
a  few  words.  The  usual  position  on  the  back  is  with- 
out doubt  the  most  convenient,  the  best,  and  theoreti- 
cally the  most  correct.  But  here,  as  elsewhere,  at 
times,  practice  jars  a  little  with  theory,  and  while  I 
by  all  means  prefer  the  dorsal  position  as  far  as  my 
own  convenience  is  concerned,  my  rule  of  conduct  is 
always  to  let  the  woman  assume  whatever  position  for 
which  she  shows  a  preference.  The  last  woman  I  at- 
tended was  sitting  on  and  between  two  chairs,  and  there 
she  remained  until  the  head  was  delivered,  when,  with 
the  aid  of  two  assistants,  I  quickly  placed  her  on  her 
back  in  the  bed.  Repeatedly  have  I  seen  the  pains 
become  active  and  labor  progress  finely  after  the  wom- 
an had  assumed  a  standing  position,  generally  between, 
and  supported  by,  two  friends,  while  the  pains  again 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  33 

would  become  inefficient  and  slow  on  resuming  the 
recumbent  position.  The  habit  of  English  obstetric 
practitioners  of  placing  their  patient  on  the  left  side  has 
at  times  advantages  the  value  of  which  I  think  Am- 
erican practitioners  as  a  rule  do  not  fully  appreciate. 
Many  times,  when  foiled  in  some  manipulation  with 
my  patient  on  her  back,  have  I  succeeded  in  accom- 
plishing my  object  after  placing  her  in  that  position 
peculiar  to  the  English.  I  have,  for  instance,  several 
times  been  called  to  primipara,  in  the  first  stage  of 
labor,  when  the  os  has  been  so  high  in  the  pelvis  that 
I  was  unable  to  reach  it  in  the  usual  way,  when,  upon 
turning  her  on  her  left  side,  I  found  it  with  compara- 
tive ease.  Again,  sometimes  we  meet  cases  where 
everything  seems  normal,  the  os  well  dilated,  vagina 
large  and  roomy,  but  the  vertex  resting  against  a  more 
than  usually  inclined  pubic  bone,  and  no  amount  of 
uterine  contraction  sufficient  to  dislodge  it.  Usually 
this  is  easily  relieved  by  putting  one  or  two  fingers 
between  the  pubic  bone  and  the  head  during  a  couple 
of  pains.  But  twice  have.  I  failed  thus  to  relieve  my 
patient  and  then,  after  applying  and  adjusting  the 
forceps  while  my  patient  remained  on  her  back,  turn 
her  carefully  over  on  her  left  side,  thus  enabling  me 
to  bring  the  handles  of  the  instruments  well  backward, 
and  extract  the  head,  using  no  more  force  than  was 
easily  applied  with  the  left  hand,  unaided. 

Sometimes,  when  it  is  found  exceedingly  difficult  or 
even  impossible  to  apply  and  adjust  the  instruments 
in  the  usual  way,  it  may  be  done  with  the  woman  thus 
placed.  I,  of  course,  do  not  claim  that  it  always  can 
be  done,  but  sometimes,  at  least,  this  will  prove  a  val- 
uable expedient  that  will  help  us  out  of  a  dilemma. 

Among  the  mechanical  means  at    our  disposal  I 


34  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

shall  only  speak  of  the  forceps.  In  my  opinion — and 
I  have  good  precedents  —  as  an  agent  of  relief  the 
obstetric  forceps,  carefully  used,  surpasses  in  value  by 
far  all  other  means  combined.  I  am  aware  that  many 
physicians  will  and  do  contradict  this,  and  prefer  to 
have  Nature  unaided  have  its  own  way,  even  if  it  takes 
a  fearful  length  of  time  and  untold  agonies  to  the  poor 
woman.  And  the  reason  for  this  is  very  plain.  The 
forceps  are  looked  upon  as  formidable  instruments,  to 
be  used  only  on  extreme  occasions,  when  the  parturi- 
ent woman  has  exhausted  all  her  vital  energies,  and 
life  almost  ebbing  away;  when  her  sufferings  have 
been  so  long-continued  and  agonizing  that  death  seems 
even  more  preferable  than  life ;  when  her  husband  and 
sorrowing  friends,  driven  to  despair  from  sympathy 
with  her  sufferings,  ask  for  and  insist  on  some  kind  of 
interference  to  save  her  life,  if  still  possible.  And 
then  finally,  to  cap  the  climax,  there  must  be  whisper- 
ing councils  held,  instruments  sent  for,  other  doctors 
called  to  assist,  examinations  made,  and  other  grand 
preparations  for  a  great  operation.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances I  blame  no  one  for  dreading  the  forceps 
and  their  use.  But  fortunately  for  suffering  woman- 
hood, this  state  of  things  is  passing  away.  Many 
physicians  have  long  looked  upon  these  instruments 
in  a  better  light  than  this.  In  reality,  the  forceps  are 
nothing  else  than  an  imitation  of  and  an  excellent 
substitute  for  the  hands  of  the  accoucher.  They  are 
stronger,  more  effective  and  at  the  same  time  gentler 
than  those  given  us  by  Mother  Nature,  and  ought  not 
to  be  dreaded  any  more  than  the  use  of  the  natural 
hand.  Indeed,  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  as  many, 
if  not  more,  children  are  born  dead  in  consequence  of 
the  results  of  traction  with  the  hand  in  breech  pre- 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  35 

sentations  than  as  a  result  of  the  use  of  forceps  in 
vertex  presentations.  On  the  choice  of  forceps  I  do 
not  lay  as  much  stress  as  some  practitioners.  I  am 
in  the  habit  of  using  Prof.  Hodge's  long  forceps,  sim- 
ply for  the  reason  that  I  am  so  well  used  to  them,  and 
know  their  curves  so  intimately  that  in  their  applica- 
tion it  seems  almost  as  if  my  hand  could  slip  them  on 
to  the  head  of  their  own  accord,  without  any  attention 
of  the  mind.  Some  physicians  are  in  the  habit  of 
using  Elliot's,  others  Ziegler's,  and  so  forth,  each  one 
very  naturally  being  able  to  do  the  best  work  with  the 
instruments  with  which  he  is  most  familiar.  In  an 
occipito  -  post  presentation,  where  it  is  desirable  or 
necessary  to  change  it  to  an  occipito  -  anterior,  the 
short,  straight  forceps  are  almost  indispensable,  but 
that  is  the  only  particular  condition  I  now  can  think 
of  when  I  could  not  use  my  usual  instruments. 

I  always  carry  my  forceps  with  me  to  cases  of  con- 
finement, unless  the  patient  is  near  my  house ;  and 
the  fact  of  having  them  at  hand  never  induces  me  to 
use  them  with  undue  haste,  or  without  good  cause. 
Whenever  I  think  necessary  to  use  them  I  do  so  with 
as  little  ado  as  possible,  simply  telling  the  woman  that 
she  had  better  let  me  help  her  a  little,  promising  I 
shall  soon  see  her  through ;  explain  the  operation  to 
her  in  the  light  I  see  it ;  act  without  any  sort  of  hurry, 
and  it  is  very  rarely  that  I  cannot  get  her  full  consent 
and  active  co-operation.  And  that  is  a  point  to  which 
I  attach  much  importance,  fully  believing  that  the 
chances  for  a  good  recovery  are  much  greater  when 
I  can  remove  the  mental  anguish  and  anticipations 
of  evil  necessarily  incident  to  such  occasions. 

Chloroform  I  never  administer  previous  to  having 
the  forceps  applied  and  adjusted,  and  prefer  not  to 


36  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

give  it  at  all  if  I  can  manage  to  get  along  without  itr 
because  I  am  certain  that  its  administration  weakens 
the  pains  and  lengthens  the  intervals  between  them, 
thus  retarding  the  object  in  view. 

The  habit  of  placing  the  woman  squarely  across 
and  on  the  edge  of  the  bed  I  have  not  followed  for 
some  time  back,  even  in  some  of  the  most  severe 
cases ;  preferring  to  let  the  woman  lay  lengthwise  in 
the  bed  on  her  back,  placing  myself  with  my  right  leg 
behind  the  footboard,  and  the  left  one  step  forward 
by  the  side  of  the  bed,  thereby  gaining  a  firm  position, 
enabling  me  to  work  with  great  steadiness  and  cer- 
tainty. Should  the  head  of  the  child  be  high  in  the 
pelvis,  making  it  necessary  to  bring  the  handles  of  the 
instruments  well  backward,  I  generally  make  the  wom- 
an turn  on  her  left  side,  rather  than  on  to  the  edge 
of  the  bed.  The  too  common  habit  of  throwing  off 
almost  all  the  clothing,  unnecessarily  exposing  her 
person  during  the  application  and  use  of  the  forceps, 
is  to  me  as  disgusting  as  it  is  uncalled  for,  the  sense 
of  touch  being  abundantly  sufficient  for  all  ordinary 
purposes.  And  I  know  of  nothing  that  will  more 
certainly  insure  the  gratitude  and  friendship  of  our 
patient  than  a  due  sense  of  delicacy  in  this  regard, 
whether  it  be  in  obstetrics  or  gynaecological  practice. 

I  never  oil  my  instruments  previous  to  their  intro- 
duction, because  I  can  see  no  valid  reason  for  so  doing, 
and  think  it  rather  objectionable  as  tending  to  increase 
the  chances  of  having  them  slip.  Dr.  G.  Hamilton, 
of  Falkirk,  England,  strongly  recommends  the  smear- 
ing of  the  inner  surface  of  the  blades  with  India-rub- 
ber paste,  and  though  I  have  never  used  it  as  yet,  I 
can  easily  imagine  it  to  be  a  valuable  expedient,  and 
one  I  shall  not  forget  to  make  use  of  when  opportu- 
nity presents. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC   MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  37 

To  tie  the  handles,  thus  producing  constant  and 
unyielding  compression  of  the  head,  or  to  apply  con- 
tinued and  unremitting  traction,  is,  in  my  opinion,  bad 
practice — fraught  with  "much  danger  to  mother  and 
child.  I  invariably  let  the  forceps  entirely  out  of  my 
hands  in  the  intervals  of  the  pains,  and  if  there  are  no 
uterine  contractions,  I  still  act  in  the  same  way,  imitat- 
ing the  natural  pains. 

When  is  the  proper  time  to  resort  to  the  use  of 
forceps  ?  That  can  only  be  answered  approximately. 
Several  good  authorities  tell  us  to  use  them  after 
having  waited  for  about  two  hours  after  the  commence- 
ment of  the  second  stage.  It  should  be  something  very 
urgent  that  would  induce  me  to  apply  them  any  sooner 
than  this.  In  many  cases,  where  the  head  is  large, 
it  requires  somewhat  longer  time  to  mold  to  the  shape 
of  the  passage,  and  as  long  as  it  remains  movable, 
I  should  be  disposed  to  wait  more  than  two  hours,  es- 
pecially in  cases  of  primipara.  Again,  if  it  remains  sta- 
tionary, no  alternations  of  advancing  or  receding  tak- 
ing place,  I  should  feel  in  duty  bound  not  to  wait  long 
before  rendering  assistance.  In  cases  where  the  pains 
are  weak  and  inefficient,  and  the  woman  nervous  and 
debilitated,  other  things  being  favorable,  I  apply  and 
deliver.  In  cases  where  the  pains  are  violent  and 
almost  continuous,  and  no  corresponding  progress 
toward  delivery,  I  would  not  dare  to  leave  the  patient 
long  without  aid.  In  puerperal  convulsions  forceps 
are  often  the  best  means  at  our  command,  but  at 
times  turning  or  medicinal  means  take  the  precedence. 
In  breech  presentations,  after  the  body  and  shoulders 
are  delivered,  if  the  head  does  not  readily  come  away 
by  the  proper  manipulations,  I  never  apply  much 
traction  to  the  shoulders,  but  prefer  applying  the  for- 


38  TRANSACTIONS. 

ceps,  taking  care  always  to  have  the  handles  toward 
the  chest  of  the  child.  In  cases  of  extreme  nervous 
irritability  it  is  sometimes  absolutely  necessary  to 
deliver  by  means  of  these  instruments. 

I  cannot  enumerate  all  conditions  which  may  call 
for  interference  of  art,  because  each  case  must,  to  a 
great  extent,  be  judged  upon  according  to  its  own 
peculiar  merit. 

And,  in  concluding,  let  me  remark  that  I  believe 
thousands  of  women,  having  learned  by  experience, 
can  with  all  their  hearts  join  me  in  saying  that,  "  As 
an  agent  of  relief  to  the  parturient  woman,  the  obstet- 
ric forceps,  carefully  used,  surpasses  in  value,  by  far, 
all  other  means  combined." 


OVARIAN    DISEASES. 


BY  G.  M.  PEASE,  M.  D.,    SAN  FRANCISCO. 


Of  the  history  of  ovarian  diseases  there  seems  to  be 
but  very  little  known  as  illustrated  by  ancient  litera- 
ture. The  functions  of  these  organs  were  undoubted- 
ly known  to  the  anatomists  as  early  as  200  B.  C. 
The  works  of  ^tius  and  Paul  of  ^gina  make  no 
mention  whatever  of  ovarian  diseases. 

The  operation  of  ovariotomy  was  never  systemati- 
cally performed  before  the  year  1809,  which  shows  how 
recently  only  have  the  profession,  even  of  modern 
times,  fully  understood  the  subject.  But  during  the 
last  fifteen  or  twenty  years  the  progress  made  illustrates 
the  fact  that  lost  time  was  being  made  up. 

The  diseased  conditions  of  the  ovaries  have  been 
fully  investigated,  and  their  diagnosis  reduced  to  a 
.science.  Surgical  operations  of  the  most  apparent  im- 
possibilities and  dangers  have  been  made,  followed  by 
such  successes  as  make  them  legitimate  and  justifiable. 
Although  to  this  day  the  physicians  of  the  old  school 
are  still  in  the  dark  as  to  the  therapeutic  treatment  of 
ovaritis,  the  Homoeopathist  has  no  doubts,  but  straight- 
way masters  all  the  apparent  difficulties,  and  what  was 
the  bane  of  the  former  gynaecologists  is  now  only 
regarded  by  a  Homoeopathist  as  a  subject  for  perhaps  a 
little  more  careful  study,  with  a  certainty  of  a  success- 
ful issue. 

There  are  several  varieties  of  diseases  affecting  the 
ovaries,  the   most  important  of  which  are  atrophy, 


4O  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

hypertrophy,  apoplexy,  inflammation,  and  tumors, 
and  I  will  speak  only  of  the  two  latter.  By  the  term 
"  ovaritis"  we  mean  an  inflammation  of  the  tissue 
comprising  the  ovaries ;  there  are  two  kinds,  acute  and 
chronic,  and  are  both  somewhat  difficult  of  diagnosis. 
In  the  acute  form,  unless  the  resulting  abscess  or  sup- 
puration should  be  discharged  through  the  Fallopian 
tubes  into  the  uterus  and  find  a  passage  out  in  that 
way,  death  is  sure  to  follow  from  the  inflammation 
caused  by  the  pus  in  the  peritoneal  cavity. 

OVARIAN  TUMORS. — There  are  three  forms  of  these 
tumors  —  fluid  tumors  —  solid  tumors  —  composite 
tumors. 

To  be  exact  in  nomenclature,  only  those  which 
are  strictly  within  the  structure  of  the  ovaries 
should  be  classed  as  fluid  tumors,  but  since  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  always  draw  the  lines  of  differentiation,  it  is. 
common  to  class  under  that  head  hydatid  cysts,  ova- 
rian cysts,  and  cysts  of  the  broad  ligament.  Hydatid 
cysts  may  develop  in  the  ovary,  but  so  rare  are  they 
that  it  is  hardly  worth  any  extended  comments.  Ova- 
rian cysts  are  those  that  develop  within  the  substance 
of  the  ovary.  It  is  a  mooted  point  with  pathologists 
as  to  the  origin  of  these  cysts.  Every  cyst  has  three 
coats — some  external  and  serous,  made  up  of  the  peri- 
toneal lining  of  the  ovary ;  another,  fibrous  and  vascu- 
lar, consisting  of  the  enveloping  stroma  much  altered  ; 
and  the  third,  a  thin,  shining  coat,  composed  of  fibrous 
structure,  epithelial  cells,  and  sometimes  a  deposit 
of  cholesterine  from  the  contents  of  the  sac. 

These  cyst-walls  may  become  so  thick  as  an  inch 
or  an  inch  and  a  half.  One  case  upon  which  I  operat- 
ed a  few  years  ago  presented  a  cyst -wall  nearly  two 
inches  thick ;  in  fact,  so  thick  were  the  walls  that 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  41 

though  the  whole  tumor  weighed  eleven  pounds,  only- 
two  pounds  of  fluid  was  contained  within  the  sac. 

These  fluid  tumors  may  assume  several  forms,, 
unilocular,  multilocular,  multiple.  The  unilocular  is 
simply  a  dilatation  of  a  Graafian  follicle ;  but  it  may  go 
on  to  an  immense  size.  The  multilocular  cyst  is  one- 
in  which  smaller  cysts  develop  either  upon  its  inter- 
nal or  external  surface.  The  multiple  cyst  is  simply 
the  development,  side  by  side,  of  several  Graafian  folli- 
cles or  of  cysts  developing  independently.  They  are 
bound  together  by  one  envelope,  but  are,  at  the  same 
time,  cysts  by  themselves,  and  entirely  independent  of 
each  other,  though  they  are  bound  together  by  one 
envelope.  Intercommunication  may  take  place,  but 
only  of  an  accidental  occurrence. 

In  the  multilocular  or  multiple  cysts  the  fluid  con- 
tents are  usually  not  as  clear  as  in  a  unilocular  cyst. 
It  is  frequently  as  thick  as  the  white  of  an  egg,  or  cold 
molasses,  and  sometimes  cannot  be  made  to  run- 
through  a  large  canula. 

It  is  of  various  colors,  sometimes  yellow,  brown,  red 
or  coffee-colored,  and  in  some  cases  like  pus. 

A  case  upon  which  I  operated  nearly  four  years 
ago  presented  several  colors  and  degrees  of  consist- 
ency. One  cyst  was  of  a  bright  amber  color  and 
would  flow  through  the  canula;  another  was  of  a 
dirty-brown  and  semi -solid;  and  still  another  was 
quite  red  and  bloody;  while  a  fourth  contained  a. 
mixture  of  amber-colored  fluid,  with  pus,  in  different 
degrees  of  fluidity. 

As  I  have  before  noted,  there  is  a  variety  of  ova- 
rian tumors  called  the  solid  tumor,  which  is  the 
enlargement,  by  congestion  or  otherwise,  of  the 
substance  of  the  ovary.  A  common  form  of  solid 


42  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

tumor  is  that  of  the  schirrus.  Again,  we  have  the 
composite,  which  is  both  solid  and  fluid.  The  most 
common  of  these  is  the  fluid  tumor,  and  next  will 
come  the  composite,  for,  although  in  the  cystic 
formations  there  is  frequently  an  atrophy  of  the 
ovary,  yet  quite  as  often  is  there  a  considerable 
degree  of  hypertrophy.  From  my  own  personal 
observation  and  research  I  am  inclined  to  think 
that  the  atrophy  of  the  ovary  is  more  common  in 
the  unilocular  cystic  formation  than  in  either  of  the 
other  two  forms  of  fluid  tumors. 

As  to  the  cause  of  this  ovarian  disease  there 
seems  to  be  no  settled  opinion,  but  age  seems  to 
have  some  bearing  upon  it,  and  it  is  undoubtedly 
owing  to  excitements  of  different  kinds  during  the 
age  or  duration  of  the  menses,  the  most  common 
ages  being  between  twenty  and  forty. 

A  patient  with  an  ovarian  tumor  rarely  has  any 
evidence  of  its  existence  until  it  has  increased  to 
such  a  size  as  to  make  itself  felt  above  the  brim  of 
the  pelvis,  or  until  the  abdomen  has  increased  in 
size.  When  the  surgeon  is  consulted,  soon  after  the 
tumor  has  left  the  pelvis  he  will  find  it  varying  in 
size  from  that  of  a  hen's  to  a  goose's  egg,  and  not 
unlike  it  in  shape.  It  will  be  found  to  occupy  a  posi- 
tion to  one  or  the  other  side  of  the  mesial  line. 
The  best  position  for  the  patient  to  assume  during 
an  examination  is  probably  upon  the  back,  as,  if  the 
walls  of  the  abdomen  are  thin,  the  shape  of  the  tumor 
can  be  seen.  But  I  am  not  usually  content  with  this 
position  alone,  and  request  the  patient  to  lie  upon 
either  side,  and  also  to  stand  upright.  To  the  touch 
it  will  usually  be  found  to  be  circumscribed,  some- 
\vhat  elastic,  usually  movable,  and  to  a  considerable 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  43 

degree  prominent,  and  is  rarely  sensitive.  At  an 
early  stage  the  general  health  may  not  be  essentially 
affected.  As  the  increase  in  size  takes  place  it  rises 
above  the  fundus  of  the  uterus ;  it  may  take  a  more 
central  position,  and  the  patient  may  not  become 
aware  of  its  presence,  because  of  having  experienced 
no  inconvenience  from  it,  until  it  occupies  the  middle 
of  the  hypogastric  region,  and  then  she  notices  it  only 
on  account. of  her  increased  size. 

As  the  tumor  increases  in  size,  gradually  encroach* 
ing  upon  the  abdominal  cavity  and  pressing  upon  the 
viscera,  it  becomes  less  and  less  movable.  Still  it  is 
marked  in  its  shape,  is  elastic,  and  decidedly  promi- 
nent. If  the  tumor  be  of  the  multilocular  cystic  form, 
the  fluctuation  is  not  so  distinct,  and  ridges  may  be 
felt  over  the  walls  of  the  tumor.  The  presence  of  an 
ovarian  tumor  may  be  entirely  devoid  of  constitution- 
al symptoms,  and  the  entire  freedom  from  symptom- 
atic derangement  is  a  point  of  great  diagnostic  value 
in  simple  cystic  disease,  while  if  a  different  state  of 
things  exist  it  points  strongly  to  the  existence  of 
malignant  disease,  or  a  more  solid  form  of  pelvic  tumor ; 
still,  it  is  not  uncommonly  the  case  that  a  tumor  which 
has  assumed  such  size  as  to  displace  the  neighboring 
viscera  and  compress  them  into  a  narrow  compass  will, 
no  matter  how  simple  or  benign  in  its  character,  pro- 
duce the  most  distressing  symptoms.  In  the  diag- 
nosis, the  existence  of  the  menstrual  flow  is  not  at  all 
contradictory  of  the  presence  of  a  tumor,  since  one 
ovary  may  be  in  a  healthy  condition ;  or,  if  both  are 
tumified,  there  still  may  be  some  of  the  Graafian  fol- 
licles in  a  healthy  condition.  And  what  is  more  re- 
markable as  a  physiological  fact,  the  removal  of  both 
ovaries  is  sometimes  followed  by  a  regular  red  dis- 


44  TRANSACTIONS   OF   THE 

charge,  even  for  years  and  until  it  is  arrested  at  the 
usual  climatic  period.  Should  a  patient  present  her- 
self with  an  enlarged  abdomen  and  we  suspect  an  ova-- 
rian  tumor  it  is  not  always  easy  to  make  a  diagnosis, 
and  it  is  only  by  differentiation  that  we  may  be  able 
to  arrive  at  a  conclusion.  Those  complaints  most 
liable  to  be  mistaken  for  ovarian  tumors  are  fecal 
accumulation,  extra  uterine  pregnancy,  normal  preg- 
nancy, uterine  fibroids,  ascites,  hydatids,  distention 
of  uterus  by  fluid.  I  will  only  note  the  differences 
between  the  two  most  important — those  of  uterine 
fibroids  and  of  ovarian  tumors — since  they  are  often 
the  most  easily  mistaken  the  one  for  the  other. 

First. — In  uterine  fibroids  there  is  usually  menor- 
rhagia.  In  ovarian  tumors  menorrhagia  does  not 
exist  as  a  symptom. 

Second. — In  uterine  fibroids  the  uterus,  measured 
by  the  sound,  is  enlarged. 

Third. — In  uterine  fibroids  the  mass  feel  pervaginam 
is  irregular,  and  continuous  with  the  uterus.  In  ovarian 
tumors  the  mass  is  smooth,  and  not  continuous  with 
the  uterus. 

Fourth. — There  is  generally  leucorrhcea  in  uterine 
fibroids,  while  in  ovarian  tumors  there  is  none. 

Fifth. — in  uterine  fibroid  the  sound  placed  in  the 
uterus,  and  made  to  move  the  uterus,  the  tumor,  felt  by 
the  hand  on  the  abdomen,  moves  also,  whereas,  in 
ovarian  tumors  the  tumor  does  not  move. 

Sixth. — In  ovarian  tumors  the  uterus  is  not  so 
markedly  displaced  as  in  uterine  fibroids. 

Seventh. — In  uterine  fibroid  the  tumor  is  always 
hard,  while  tumor  of  the  ovary,  if  fluid,  fluctuates. 

Having  decided  the  tumor  to  be  ovarian,  it  is  next 
necessary  to  know  its  type,  and  when  doubt  exists,  an 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  45 

explorative  tapping  should  be  resorted  to.    If  of  fluid 
form,  we  might  like  to  know  whether  it  is  multilocu- 
lar  or  not — as  a  rule,  if  very  large  it  is  multilocular, 
but  our  explorative  tap  will  reveal  the  character  by 
the  appearance  of  the  escaping  fluid.     To  help  us  in 
prognosis  we  desire  also  to  know  if  there  are  adhe- 
sions.    If  it  has  developed  rapidly,  there  are  probably 
no  adhesions,  while,  if  of  slow  growth,  and  there  have 
been  pains  and  inflammation,  we  can  expect  to  find 
more  or  less  adhesions.     The  limits  of  this  paper  will 
not  allow  me  to  investigate  the  causes  of  these  tu- 
mors, and   I  will  simply  state  that  whatever  tends  to 
produce  congestions  is  undoubtedly  the  main  cause 
of  their  development.     In  hundreds  of  cases,  persons 
afflicted  with  ovarian  disease  abandon  themselves,  and 
are  abandoned  by  their  medical  advisers,  to  a  slow 
and  painful  yet  certain  death,  because  of  the  great 
clanger  which  formerly  characterized  the  operation  of 
ovariotomy.     Others,  again,  submit  themselves  to  a 
prolonged  course  of  treatment  by  some  physician  who 
vainly  hopes,  by  medicines  administered    internally, 
or  by  blister,  iodine,  or  other  applications  externally, 
to  effect  a  reduction  of  the  tumor,  until  the  period  has 
passed  when  an  operation  would   have  offered   the 
largest  probabilities  of  success.     In  yet  other  cases 
medical  men  have  contented  themselves  with  repeat- 
edly tapping  ovarian  cysts,  which,  at  best,  under  this 
process,  have  first  become  multiple,  and  then  by  can- 
cerous degeneration  have  hastened  the  sufferers  into 
untimely  graves. 

It  may  safely  be  stated  that  there  is  no  efficient 
treatment  for  ovarian  cysts  but  that  of  extirpation. 
Some  few  cases  have  undoubtedly  recovered  under 
other  treatment,  but  they  are  exceptional,  and  it  is  not 


46  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

wise  to  follow  them  as  guides,  else  we  shall  surely  be 
led  on  to  disaster  and  death. 

It  is  the  tendency  of  all  these  tumors  to  degenerate 
into  a  cancerous  condition,  or,  at  best,  to  form  such 
extensive  adhesions  as  to  draw  more  directly  from  the 
life  and  vitality  of  the  patient ;  hence,  viewed  in  this 
light,  it  becomes  the  duty  of  the  medical  man  to 
advise  the  extirpation  of  the  ovarian  cyst  as  soon  as 
it  shall  have  reached  a  size  sufficient  to  exert  any  con- 
siderable pressure  upon  the  surrounding  viscera.  Be- 
yond this  there  is  no  safety  in  allowing  them  to  re- 
main, and  there  is  practically  no  hope  of  relief  in  any 
other  direction.  The  surgeon  should  even  advise 
against  tapping,  unless  under  the  pressure  of  circum- 
stances, for  temporary  relief,  because  it  delays  an  effi- 
cient remedy,  and  because  the  operation  of  tapping 
is  not  free  from  hazard,  since  out  of  the  recorded  cases 
treated  by  tapping  nearly  twenty  per  cent,  died  within 
a  few  days  from  the  first  operation. 

The  mortality  from  ovarian  operations,  if  not  too 
long  delayed,  may  be  reduced  to  a  small  percentage, 
and  hence  ovariotomy,  if  skillfully  practiced,  may  be 
resorted  to  with  very  little  hesitation.  Very  rapid 
strides  have  been  made  since  the  first  operation  was 
performed  by  Dr.  Ephraim  McDowell,  of  Kentucky, 
in  1809,  and  we  have  not  ceased  yet;  but  the  main 
points  of  difference  between  surgeons  seem  to  be, 
or  to  have  been,  as  to  the  methods  of  treating  the 
stump  or  pedicle  after  excising  the  tumor.  As  early 
as  1866,  I  was  led  to  believe  that  the  use  of  clamps 
was  an  entirely  useless  proceeding,  and  in  my  first 
operation  after  that  conviction  I  made  a  bold  stroke 
toward  freedom  from  their  use,  and  with  such  success 
as  to  demonstrate,  beyond  a  cavil  in  my  own  mind, 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  47 

that  clamps  were  decidedly  injurious.  Some  of  the 
great  objections  which  had  been  held  out  against  the 
return  of  the  pedicle  to  the  abdominal  cavity  has 
always  been  the  fear  of  hemorrhage,  which,  after  the 
closure  of  the  wound,  could  not  be  arrested  readily  ; 
another,  that  ligatures  to  the  severed  arteries  would 
cause  suppuration,  because  acting  as  foreign  bodies, 
and  the  absorption  of  the  resulting  pus  would  pro- 
duce peritonitis  or  septicemia,  and  consequent  death. 
All  this  I  obviated  by  procuring  what  was  called  silk- 
worm gut,  which  was  purely  animal  tissue,  and  further- 
more, to  protect  against  undue  suppuration,  I  soaked 
the  gut  in  a]  solution  of  carbolic  acid ;  carbolic  acid 
was  also  freely  used  as  a  dressing  to  the  outside  wound,, 
and  my  patient  made  a  fine  recovery.  In  every  case, 
I  have  followed  the  same  plan,  and,  although  all  the 
cases  have  not  been  of  simple  form,  I  have  never  had 
cause  to  regret  my  action,  since  recovery  has  been  the 
unexceptional  result. 

Nearly  four  years  ago,  Dr.  G.  D.  Beebe,  of  Chicago, 
published  the  report  of  eight  cases  operated  upon  by 
him,  in  which  he  entirely  discarded  the  use  of  the 
clamp.  In  a  few  of  the  cases  he  adopted  my  method 
of  treating  the  stump ;  but  afterward  he  discarded 
even  the  ligature,  using  torsion  instead,  saying  "•  that 
torsion  of  an  artery,  if  it  fails  at  all,  will  fail  upon  the 
operating-table,  where  it  can  be  remedied,  and  under 
its  use  secondary  hemorrhage  is  unknown." 

It  will  be  seen  that  Dr.  Beebe  dared  to  fly  in  the 
face  of  what  was  supposed  to  be  the  only  true  method 
of  treating  the  pedicle,  and  his  reasons  are  very  logi- 
cal, and  not  only  logical  theoretically,  but  practically. 

There  have  been  almost  as  many  plans  for  treat- 
ment of  the  pedicle  as  there  have  been  operators,  and 


48  TRANSACTIONS. 

I  well  remember  my  own  thoughts  and  feelings  re- 
garding what  method  it  was  best  to  pursue  prior  to 
my  first  operation,  and  I  must  say  that  it  was  with 
some  considerable  anxiety  that  I  determined  to  adopt 
the  plan  which  I  have  ever  since  followed,  though  I 
could  find  no  authority  whatever  in  favor  of  such  a 
method. 

In  operations  of  ovariotomy  very  much  depends 
upon  the  medical  after-treatment,  and  it  is  here  that 
Homoeopathy  can  stand  unequaled,  and  the  results  of 
Homoeopathic  operators  show  a  much  less  percentage 
of  loss  than  those  of  the  old  school. 


A    NEW    APPARATUS    FOR   FRACTURED 
CLAVICLE. 

BY  J.    M.   SELFRIDGE,    M.    D.,    OAKLAND,    CALIFORNIA. 


MR.  PRESIDENT  AND  GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC 
HOMOZOPATHIC  MEDICAL  SOCIETY: 

It  is  not  my  purpose  in  this  paper  to  exhaust  the 
subject  of  fractured  clavicle,  but,  while  glancing  cur- 
sorily at  it,  my  principal  object  is  to  present  a  new 
and,  as  I  think,  a  better  apparatus  for  its  treatment 
than  has  hitherto  been  offered  to  the  profession. 

In  the  time  of  Hippocrates,  as  you  doubtless  all 
know,  the  treatment  of  fractured  clavicle  was  simply 
the  "  recumbent  posture."  Since  his  time,  however, 
the  methods  invented  for  overcoming  the  irksomeness 
of  this  position  have  been  very  numerous. 

The  indications  for  the  treatment  of  this  fracture 
have  always  been  the  same,  to  wit :  That,  in  order  to 
bring  the 'fractured  bone  into  proper  position,  "the 
shoulder  must  be  carried  upward,  backward,  and  out- 
ward." But  how  to  fulfill  these  indications  has  puz- 
zled many  of  the  finest  minds  known  to  the  profession. 
Nay,  it  may  well  be  doubted,  as  has  been  said  by 
Hamilton,  if  the  indication  to  "  carry  the  shoulder 
out  "  has  ever  been  accomplished  by  any  apparatus. 

Without  stopping  to  notice  the  causes  that  prevent 
the  accomplishment  of  this  indication,  I  will  proceed 
to  mention  two  of  the  many  hundred  contrivances 
that  have  been  presented  for  the  treatment  of  this  par- 


5O  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ticular  fracture,  viz :  The  adhesive  strap  dressing  rec- 
ommended by  Gross,  which  you  will  find  described 
in  his  System  of  Surgery,  Vol.  i,  page  899,  and  Fox's 
apparatus,  which  consists  of  the  ring  and  sling,  vari- 
ously modified. 

I  select  these,  because  doubtless  the  best  hitherto  in 
use,  and  in  this  country,  probably,  more  extensively 
used  than  any  others,  in  order  that  I  may  compare 
them  with  the  one  here  presented. 

By  turning  to  the  description  given  by  Gross  of 
the  adhesive  plaster  dressing,  you  will  observe  that  he 
places  "  the  elbow  against  the  antero-lateral  aspect  of 
the  chest,  while  the  forearm  rests  against  the  front, 
the  fingers  across  the  opposite  clavicle."  This,  you 
will  observe,  is  the  position  recommended  by  Dessault 
and  others.  This  position  is  maintained  by  the  means 
of  "  plasters  cut  into  adhesive  strips  of  appropriate 
length,  to  reach  around  the  limb  and  shoulders,  so  as 
to  form,  in  the  first  place,  a  kind  of  immovable  sling, 
and,  secondly,  to  fasten  the  arm  to  the  trunk."  This 
dressing  will  undoubtedly  stick  much  better  than  the 
interminable  bandaging  of  Dessault,  who  recommends 
the  same  position  of  the  arm.  It  could  be  applied  to 
men,  but  in  the  case  of  women  with  large  mammary 
glands,  or  those  who  are  nursing  children,  its  use' 
would  simply  be  impracticable. 

Furthermore,  should  it  become  necessary  to  change 
the  position  of  the  arm,  for  example,  to  induce  passive 
motion  of  the  elbow -joint,  the  removal  of  the  strips 
would  be  attended  with  considerable  pulling  of  hair, 
and  the  time  required  to  remove  and  readjust  would 
be  an  item  of  some  importance  to  the  busy  practition- 
er, while  the  constrained  position  of  the  arm  would 
become  exceedingly  tiresome  to  the  patient. 


ftff-r-f.          /{   /{rtf/{- 
//  /trrr/tT  -S7tf/^\  /rant    .  /xi/ftf/'V  /'rrrf  . 


\/inr/. 

nrr/mmri.vh  f/tr-  .w 


•  ~      /,r*ft/j.  //(/-mtr/h  w/rir/t  ft 

fi  fj    \/ir/t/trj      too/t. 


rrro///tr/ 
'  f/tf  r/ft 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  51 

Fox's  apparatus  is  probably  more  extensively  used 
in  this  country  than  any  other.  Professor  Hamilton 
recommends  it  in  the  following  strong  language, 
to-wit : 

"  Among  the  considerable  variety  of  dressings 
which  I  have  used,  this,  with  or  without  such  modifi- 
cations as  I  shall  presently  suggest,  has  seemed  to 
me  most  simple  in  its  construction,  the  most  comfort- 
able to  the  patient,  the  least  liable  to  derangement  (if 
I  except  Valpeau's  dextrine  bandage),  and  as  capable 
as  any  other  of  answering  the  several  indications." 

Professor  Hamilton  is  high  authority  and  believes 
what  he  teaches.  But  I  pity  the  poor  patient  if  Fox's 
apparatus  "  is  the  most  comfortable  in  use." 

The  fact  is,  it  is  a  most  uncomfortable  instrument. 
The  stuffed  ring,  bearing  as  it  does  on  a  small  portion 
of  the  shoulder,  soon  becomes  a  source  of  great  pain, 
necessitating  the  frequent  shifting  of  the  point  of 
pressure  by  the  introduction  of  soft  compresses ;  and 
when  in  the  recumbent  posture  there  is  no  position  in 
which  the  patient  can  lie  with  comfort ;  hence^  sleep 
is  well-nigh  impossible. 

Furthermore,  it  needs  great  care  and  frequent  atten- 
tion to  keep  it  properly  adjusted,  for-  the  reason  that 
the  strings  which  attach  the  sling  to  the  stuffed  ring 
are  always  stretching,  and  hence  the  apparatus  is  fre- 
quently getting  loose  and  the  fracture  liable  to  get  out 
of  place.  Such,  at  least,  has  been  my  experience  in 
the  treatment  of  several  cases  in  which  I  have  used  it. 

The. instrument  I  here  present,  which  is  well  repre- 
sented in  fig.  i,  is,  in  almost  every  respect,  to  be  pre- 
ferred. It  is  easy  of  application.  There  is  no  slipping 
of  straps.  Buckles  being  used  instead  of  strings,  it 
can  be  adjusted  with  great  exactness,  and  when  read- 


52  TRANSACTIONS   OF   THE 

justment  is  desirable  for  the  purpose  of  passive  motion, 
rest,  or  bathing  of  the  limb,  it  can  be  done  in  a  mo- 
ment, and  that,  too,  without  disturbing  the  seat  of  frac- 
ture. In  point  of  comfort,  it  challenges  competition; 
in  fact  it  has  no  peer.  It  can  be  worn  about  one's 
business  by  day,  and  slept  in  by  night  with  little  or 
no  inconvenince.  For  example,  I  once  had  a  patient, 
a -farmer,  with  a  fractured  clavicle,  who  wore  it  and 
plowed  nearly  every  day.  Also,  another,  who  used 
to  go  to  town,  get  "  as  drunk  as  David's  sow,"  and 
•drive  his  fast  horse  home  at  night  as  if  the  Old  Nick 
was  at  his  heels.  In  both  these  cases  the  cures  were 
good  ones.  I  have  used  it  on  children,  in  one  case 
two  and  a  half,  and  in  another  four  years  old,  who 
wore  it  without  complaint,  and  slept  without  rocking. 

The  instrument  here  represented  has  been  used 
on  children  ten  years  old,  but  in  the  case  of  the  pa- 
tient two  and  a  half  years  old,  an  instrument  of  the 
required  size  was  made  by  a  shoemaker — the  sling 
and  pad  being  made  by  the  mother. 

This  apparatus  was  intended  to  overcome  the  diffi- 
culties met  with  in  a  case  I  once  had,  which  I  will  now 
briefly  relate : 

In  the  Winter  of  1856-7,  while  practicing  in  Win- 
tersett,  Iowa,  I  was  called  to  see  a  lady  aged  about 
twenty-five,  who  had  received  an  injury  of  the  shoul- 
der— having  been  knocked  down  and  stepped  on  by 
a  horse.  I  found  the  right  clavicle  fractured  at  its 
middle  third.  She  had  a  young  babe  of  four  months, 
•which  she  nursed.  I  applied  Fox's  apparatus,  which 
did  as  well  as  it  ever  does,  until  the  little  joker  under- 
took to  get  his  dinner  from  the  left  breast.  He  could 
not  do  it,  for  the  reason  that  his  forehead  came  in  con- 
tact with  the  stuffed  ring  before  his  mouth  touched  the 


Viu  -\ 


/  \/t»Hfff/f/-  /tf'rvf.  /{-/irtrfv  /tfff  r 

//-fun    rfx//frirr/jrrr/..7 Mbw*    sf/vi 

1    /xf/ftwv /jfff/.  rf/tr/ff  fo/-crf/-/n.f/t/-fiftr//t 

I    V/x/'yy.s-  //'O/lt    .sV»/y.  fffO/t    7.   l\rr  Fir/./.) 

/*.S////«y  fat-  rf/7/t .  ft  \//-rtjt  ntvuttirt barfa. 

7  •  \'fr/it/  /iti-  /irttir/. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  55 

nipple,  consequently  there  was  a  great  squall,  and  the 
apparatus  had  to  be  removed.  How  to  overcome  the 
difficulty  with  comfort  to  the  patient  was  the  problem. 
My  first  thought  was  to  cut  a  piece  of  strong  leather 
similar  to  the  shoulder -piece  A  (fig.  2),  with  buckles 
attached,  and  of  sufficient  length  to  close  in  the  armpit.. 
This  was  done,  well  padded,  and  applied.  But  I  soon, 
found  the  weight  of  the  broken  shoulder  draw  the  pad 
against  the  axillary  vessels  with  sufficient  force  to  ob- 
struct the  circulation  in  the  arm  ;  this,  of  course,  would 
not  do,  and,  after  some  thought,  the  idea  of  the  body- 
piece  B  (fig.  2),  suggested  itself  to  my  mind.  This  is 
also  a  piece  of  strong  leather,  so  cut  as  to  fit  the  side 
of  the  chest,  and  is  attached  to  the  shoulder-piece  by 
buckles  3  3  in  such  a  manner  that  the  size  of  the 
instrument  can  be  increased  or  diminished  at  will. 

The  buckles  4  4  receive  the  strap  that  passes 
around  the  waist  and  confines  the  body-piece  to  the 
chest. 

The  loop  5,  in  the  middle  of  the  body-piece,  receives 
the  strap  that  passes  over  the  point  of  the  elbow  and 
under  the  forearm ;  this  strap  serves  the  double  pur- 
pose  of  keeping  the  arm  confined  at  the  .side,  and  at 
the  same  time  receiving  a  portion  of  the  weight  of  the 
disabled  shoulder.  Thus  improved,  it.  was  applied,, 
and  the  patient  kept  under  observation  for  three  or 
four  days,  when  she  was  allowed  to  go  to  her  home,, 
eight  miles  into  the  country,  where  she  remained  four 
weeks,  wearing  it  with  entire  comfort  to  herself  and 
child,  nor  was  it  once  readjusted  during  the  whole 
period.  At  the  end  of  this  time  the  instrument  was 
removed,  the  union  was  perfect  and  without  deformity. 

The  instrument  should  first  be  increased  or  dimin- 
ished to  the  size  of  the  patient,  then  applied  to  the 


54  TRANSACTIONS. 

sound  shoulder,  and  the  body-piece  fastened  snugly 
to  the  body  by  means  of  strap  4  (fig.  3).  After  plac- 
ing the  pad  in  the  axilla,  raise  the  shoulder  and  fasten 
the  straps  in  the  buckle  i  i  (fig.  i).  Then  place  the 
forearm  in  the  sling,  and  the  elbow  in  the  proper  po- 
sition, while  an  assistant  fastens  the  strap  in  buckles 
2  2  (fig.  i).  A  sling  for  the  hand  may  be  buckled  in 
front,  as  seen  in  fig.  2.  Lastly,  fasten  the  elbow- 
strap  5  (fig.  2)  to  the  sling  with  small  safety-pins  (for 
ease  of  adjustment  to  either  side),  pass  the  strap  under 
the  forearm,  as  in  fig.  2,  then  through  the  loop  5  in 
body-piece  (fig.  i),  and  buckle  sufficiently  tight  to  con- 
fine the  elbow  to  the  trunk,  without  compressing  the 
brachial  artery  and  nerves. 

RECAPITULATION. 

The   advantages  claimed  for  this,  over  any  other 
apparatus  with  which  I  am  acquainted  are : 

1.  The  ease  and  rapidity  with  which  it  is  adjusted, 
requiring  but  a  few  moments  for  the  whole  opera- 
tion. 

2.  Re-adjustment  is  seldom  necessary,  from  the  fact 
that  the  straps  are  made  of  non-elastic  material,  and, 
therefore,  do  not  stretch  ;  and  the  buckles  prevent  slip- 
ping, while  they  allow  the  greatest  nicety  of  adjust- 
ment. 

3.  The  perfect  ease  with  which  it  is  worn,  allowing 
the  patient  to  assume  any  position  he  may  choose, 
with  comfort,  and  even  pursue  his  ordinary  business. 

4.  It  can  be  made  by  an  ordinary  harness-maker, 
and  at  a  trifling  expense. 

5.  After  nineteen  years'  use  of  it,  in  the  treatment 
of  cases  in  the  old  and  young,  I  am  confident  it  fulfills 
the  three  indications  BETTER  than  any  apparatus  I  have 
seen,  and  I  therefore  most  respectfully  recommend  it 
to  the  consideration  of  the  profession. 


recf.     JJ-ffof/y  pi  fee. 
/-  .\/fft/j  jf/-om   .f\j//crrv  /Vrr/.    -^--S'lrrfft  t/oe,v  trrotwrf  body; 
-      -  ..        Mir  try.  5-*-fxt'/lttrr  Pcrrf . 


CASE     OF    ACCIDENTAL    OR    INVOLUN- 
TARY PROVING  OF  PODOPHYLLIN. 


BY    H.  KNAPP,  M.  D.,  SAN    FRANCISCO. 


Miss  Ida  W.,  age  about  20 ;  bilious  temperament ; 
somewhat  chlorotic  ;  generally  well  except  constipa- 
tion and  scanty  and  somewhat  painful  menstruation. 
On  recommendation  of  a  neighbor,  procured  twenty- 
five  cents'  worth  of  Podophyllin  of  a  druggist,  and  put 
what  she  supposed  to  be  half  a  grain  in  a  capsule,  and 
took  it,  Sunday  evening,  March  21,  1875,  about  ten 
o'clock. 

In  the  night  felt  pain  in  the  stomach,  and  about  three 
in  the  morning  nausea  and  severe  pain  in  the  bowels. 
About  seven,  Monday  morning,  vomited  the  contents 
of  the  stomach  and  then  considerable  bile  ;  felt  better 
until  about  ten  A.  M.  ;  vomited  again,  and  bowels  moved 
twice,  but  not  copiously,  attended  with  very  much 
pain  and  deadly  nausea. 

The  pain  in  stomach  and  bowels,  and  nausea  con- 
tinuing to  increase  in  severity,  her  father  came  for  me 
in  the  evening.  Saw  her  at  eight  o'clock,  and  learned 
the  foregoing  history. 

As  the  pain  in  the  stomach  was  attended  with  much 
thirst  and  burning  sensation,  and  great  sense  of  pros- 
tration, prescribed  Ars.  album,  to  be  given  once  an 
hour  or  two,  and  ordered  hot  fomentations  to  be  ap- 
plied to  the  bowels,  and  if  any  more  vomiting  a  half 


56  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

teaspoonful  of  clear,  strong  coffee,  occasionally  after 
the  vomiting.  The  next  morning  her  father  reported 
that  she  had  vomited  only  once  during  the  night,  and 
appeared  better.  Sent  word  to  continue  the  medicine. 
In  the  evening  he  called  at  the  office,  and  said  that 
she  had  vomited  some  more  during  the  day,  and  in 
the  afternoon  had  a  chill,  followed  by  some  fever  and 
headache.  Sent  her  Gelseminum,  to  be  taken  every 
hour  or  two,  and  Ipecac,  to  be  given  after  the  vomit- 
ing. Saw  her  next  morning,  Wednesday,  about  ten 
o'clock,  found  her  pulse  100,  very  thirsty,  great  ten- 
derness over  the  stomach  and  bowels,  scarcely  bear- 
ing the  pressure  of  the  bed-clothes;  no  vomiting  dur- 
ing the  night,  and  no  movement  of  the  bowels  since 
Monday,  but  felt  like  it  several  times.  Pain  in  the 
bowels  occasionally,  but  not  so  severe  ;  some  fever  and 
headache ;  tongue  white ;  urine  very  red.  Continued 
Gelseminum  and  ordered  injections  of  soap  and  water, 
and  Ipecac,  if  any  vomiting,  with  orders  to  send  for 
me  if  she  did  not  continue  to  improve,  hoping  that 
the  Podophyllin  had  spent  its  force,  and  that  she 
would  now  convalesce. 

Next  morning,  Thursday,  summoned  in  great  haste. 
Responded  promptly,  and  saw  her  about  half- past, 
nine  A.  M.  On  inquiry  found  she  had  had  a  good 
discharge  of  the  bowels,  from  the  injection  yesterday ; 
had  vomited  no  more ;  not  so  much  pain  in  stomach 
or  bowels,  though  quite  tender;  had  eaten  two  small 
crackers  during  the  day,  yesterday — the  first  retained 
since  Monday.  Rested  well  during  the  night,  and  on 
awaking  this  morning  thought  she  felt  well  enough  to 
get  up,  but  her  mother  kept  her  in  bed,  and  as  she 
felt  some  appetite  gave  her  some  toast.  Soon  after 
eating  it  pain  commenced  in  the  stomach,  extending 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  57* 

into  the  bowels,  increasing  with  such  severity  that  she- 
could  not  resist  screaming  at  every  breath,  alarming: 
even  the  neighbors.  Several  came  in,  and  as  every 
one  had  a  remedy,  she  was  given  hot  whisky  -  sling,. 
Jamaica  ginger,  peppermint,  and  paregoric,  and  finally 
placed  in  a  hot  bath,  soon  after  which  she  vomited 
every  thing  they  had  given  her,  and  got  easier.  When. 
I  arrived  she  was  in  bed,  wrapped  in  flannels,  and 
sweating  finely. 

At  this  time,  pulse  1 10,  very  thirsty,  and  tender  over 
stomach  and  bowels,  increased  by  the  least  motion;, 
could  scarcely  bear  to  be  touched ;  very  nervous  and- 
crampy ;  spasmodic  sensation  in  right  thigh  and  leg. 
Continued  Gelseminum  with  Dioscorea  if  much  pain 
in  bowels.    Saw  her  again  in  the  afternoon ;  pain  had. 
extended  into  the  lower  bowels  and  right  ovary ;  more 
pain  and  cramps  in  right  leg;  pulse  116,  still  thirsty; 
white  fur  on  the  tongue,  except  the  centre,  and  every- 
thing tasted  sweet ;  tenderness  and  some  bloating  of 
lower  bowels.     Discontinued  Gelseminum  and  Dios- 
corea and  gave  Veratrum  viride  and  Nux,  with  hot. 
fomentations  over  the  bowels. 

Friday  morning,  26th.  Saw  patient  about  ten  A.M.  ^ 
pulse  about  100;  had  rested  some  during  the  night. 
Still  very  tender  over  lower  bowels;  pain  in  right 
ovary  and  uterus;  urination  painful;  continued  medi- 
cine and  inserted  Belladonna  supposatory  for  the: 
vaginum. 

Saturday,  27th.  Had  three  discharges  from  the 
bowels  yesterday  —  green,  watery,  and  painful;  vom- 
ited green  bile  once ;  pulse  100 ;  tongue  whitish  fur, 
except  in  centre ;  less  tenderness  in  stomach  and  bow- 
els ;  occasional  sick,  faint,  sinking  feeling  at  stomach. 
Gave  Iris  Versic.,  and  continued  Veratr.  viride. 

Sunday  morning.     All  symptoms  better.     Vomit- 


58  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ed  green  bile  once  yesterday  ;  had  two  green,  watery 
•stools;  not  so  much  pain  or  tenderness;  can  bear  more 
pressure  over  the  bowels ;  retains  a  little  chicken-tea 
on  the  stomach;  pulse  100 ;  no  thirst ;  urine  more  free 
and  lighter-colored.  But  a  new  symptom  has  appeared 
this  morning:  an  intolerable  itching  of  the  skin  on 
the  body  and  arms.  On  scratching,  it  raises  up  in 
blotches  like  hives ;  occasional  sick,  faint  feeling  at 
the  stomach;  tongue  light-brown  fur.  Gave  Pulsatilla. 
In '  the  evening  her  father  called ;  said  she  had  five 
thin,  watery,  green  discharges  during  the  day,  with 
considerable  pain  and  griping.  Sent  Baptisia  to  give 
with  Pulsatilla  alternately,  and  would  see  her  in  the 
morning. 

Monday,  29th,  eleven  A.  M.  No  more  stools  dur- 
ing the  night;  pulse  98;  tongue  furred  in  centre,  red 
about  the  edges;  stomach  retained  some  food;  erup- 
tion disappeared.  Continued  the  Baptisia  and  omit- 
ted Pulsatilla. 

Tuesday,  3Oth.  All  symptoms  about  the  same ; 
only  a  few  green,  watery  discharges  continued,  attend- 
ed with  tenderness.  Continued  Baptisia  and  gave 
Merc.  viv.  3d  trit.,  in  alternation. 

Wednesday,  3ist.  Patient  improving,  some  appe- 
tite, pulse  96.  Left  her  to  convalesce. 

This  case  may  not  appear  to  any  of  you  as  partic- 
ularly worthy  of  reporting,  but  there  are  a  few  points 
to  which  I  wish  to  call  attention,  and  which  may,  per- 
liaps,  be  classed  as  new  symptoms  of  Podophyllin,  to 
wit :  the  sweet  taste,  the  eruption  of  the  skin  and  ex- 
treme tenderness  of  the  right  ovary,  none  of  these 
being  mentioned  in  the  American  provings.  Another 
peculiarity  was  the  abatement  of  the  worst  symptoms 
•on  the  third  day,  and  the  severe  aggravation  on  the 
morning  of  the  fourth. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  59 

I  was  told  at  first  that  she  had  taken  only  half  a 
grain,  but  subsequently  found  that  she  had  taken  two 
grains ;  and,  as  it  was  taken  in  a  capsule,  and  late  in 
the  evening,  may  have  modified  its  action  somewhat 
the  first  few  days,  but  intensified  it  afterward,  thus 
accounting  for  the  aggravation  on  the  fourth  day. 

Coe,  in  his  work  on  concentrated  remedies,  advises 
sour  milk  or  buttermilk  to  be  given  as  an  antidote  to 
an  overdose  of  Podophyllin ;  but  as  the  symptoms 
were  not  very  severe  at  my  first  visit,  and  supposing 
she  had  only  taken  half  a  grain,  concluded  Arsenicum 
would  be  sufficient  to  relieve  the  gastric  symptoms, 
which  it  did.  Then,  the  next  day,  the  chills  and  fever 
and  headache  gave  way  to  Gelseminum,  and  all  the 
symptoms  but  the  tenderness  in  the  bowels  and  stom- 
ach disappeared  by  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day, 
when,  after  eating  a  little  toast,  all  became  aggravated, 
and  the  last  proved  much  worse  than  the  first,  which, 
I  suppose,  may  properly  be  denominated  the  second- 
ary symptoms  of  the  Podophyllin.  The  free  use  of 
Gelseminum  in  modifying  the  primary  symptoms 
may  have  helped  to  increase  the  secondary,  as  Coe 
says  that  Gelseminum  aids  the  action  of  Podophyllin 
on  the  liver. 

The  case  evidently  presents  two  sets  of  symptoms, 
thep  primary  and  secondary,  both  as  to  time  and  qual- 
ity, or  intensity ;  hence  the  apparent  necessity  of  the 
'changes  and  alternations  of  remedies  to  meet  the 
symptoms. 

Whether  we  learn  anything  from  the  case  or  not,  I 
think  there  is  no  question  but  that  the  girl  will,  for 
she  had  a  pretty  severe  trial,  and  she  declares  she 
wants  no  more  medicines  from  drug  stores,  on  the 
recommendation  of  her  neighbors. 


6O  TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE 

NOVEMBER  3,  1875. 

Pursuant  to  call,  the  annual  session  of  the  Pacific 
Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  was  convened  in  the 
upper  hall  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion, at  ten  o'clock  A.  M. 

There  were  present  Drs.  Albertson,  Gushing,  Geary, 
Eckel,  Liliencrantz,  and  Pease.  There  were  also- 
present  Drs.  Ledyard  and  Anna  Warren. 

The  President,  Dr.  J.  J.  Gushing,  occupied  the 
chair,  and  called  for  the  reading  of  the  records  of  the 
last  session.  There  being  no  objection  made,  the 
records,  as  read  by  the  Secretary,  were  declared  ap- 
proved. 

Dr.  Albertson  said  that  as  a  movement  was  on  foot 
to  introduce  a  bill  before  the  coming  session  of  the 
Legislature,  by  the  members  of  the  Allopathic  Society, 
for  the  suppression  of  quackery,  he  would  move  that 
a  committee  be  appointed  to  frame  a  bill  to  be  pre- 
sented, in  case  the  bill  presented  by  others  may  not 
be  deemed  just. 

Drs.  Geary  and  Selfridge  made  some  remarks  upon 
the  subject,  thinking  it  might  not  be  necessary  to  take 
any  positive  action,  but  only  to  watch  the  proceed- 
ings, and  then  adapt  something  to  the  circumstances. 

Dr.  Albertson  thought  we  ought  to  be  ready  with 
our  bill,  in  order  that,  at  the  the  right  time,  it  could 
be  presented.  He  said  that,  in  conversation  with  one 
of  the  Senators,  he  was  assured  that  if  the  bill  pre- 
sented by  the  Allopaths  was  not  a  just  one,  he  would 
offer  as  a  substitute  any  bill  Dr.  Albertson  would  give 
him. 

Dr.  Geary,  referring  to  a  clause  in  the  bill  as  pro- 
posed by  the  Allopaths,  which  refers  to  the  examina- 
tion of  all  who  are  to  practice  medicine,  said  that  the 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  6 1 

legislators  cannot  pass  a  law  to  examine  those  who 
have  already  been  examined  by  the  best  colleges  of 
the  world. 

Dr.  Warren  said  that  in  Kansas  the  Legislature 
tried  to  pass  a  similar  law  requiring  examinations  ; 
but  failed  because  it  was  pronounced  unconstitutional. 

.Dr.  Geary  said  that  in  England  they  tried  to  pass 
a  bill  that  no  person  should  practice  Homoeopathy, 
but  it  was  so  modified  as  to  make  it  an  offense  for  any 
one  to  question  the  practice  of  a  person  who  had  once 
passed  his  examination  and  become  entitled  to  prac- 
tice medicine  or  surgery. 

Dr.  Albertson  said  that  with  the  consent  of  his 
second  he  would  move  that  a  Committee  of  Three 
on  Legislation  be  appointed,  with  power  to  act 
as  they  may  deem  best  for  the  good  of  Homoeop- 
athy. This  motion  was  simultaneously  seconded 
by  Drs.  Geary  and  Selfridge.  Upon  being  put 
to  vote  it  was  carried.  The  Chair  appointed  as  this 
committee  Drs.  Pease,  Albertson,  and  Selfridge. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Selfridge  the  meeting  now  ad- 
journed till  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

EVENING    SESSION. 

At  eight  o'clock  the  Society  met  in  the  parlor  of 
of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Vice-President  Selfridge  occupied 
the  chair.  There  were  present  Drs.  Geary,  Ingerson, 
Beakley,  Liliencrantz,  Pease,  Selfridge,  Albertson, 
Eckel,  Ledyard,  and  Brown.  Also  present  Drs.  War- 
ren and  Poulson. 

There  were  proposed  for  membership  Dr.  G.  H. 
Jenks,  of  San  Francisco,  who  graduated  from  the 
Hahnemann  College  of  Philadelphia,  in  1875;  Dr. 
D.  M.  Brown,  of  Los  Angeles,  from  the  Cleveland,. 


62  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

Ohio,  Gollege,  in  1861 ;  Dr.  W.  E.  Ledyard,  of  San 
Francisco,  from  college  in  Canada ;  Dr.  P.  W.  Poul- 
son,  of  San  Francisco,  from  the  New  York  Homoeop- 
athic College,  in  1866. 

The  Censors  reported  favorably  upon  the  names  of 
Jenks,  Brown,  and  Ledyard,  and  by  a  vote  of  the  So- 
ciety the  Secretary  cast  the  vote  of  the  Society  for 
each  one  separately,  and  they  were  declared  elected ; 
and  Drs.  Brown  and  Ledyard  then  and  there  signed 
the  Constitution  and  By-laws,  and  otherwise  qualified 
themselves  as  members. 

This  being  the  annual  meeting,  an  election  was  now 
held,  which  resulted  in  the  choice  of  the  following  for 
officers,  for  the  ensuing  year : 

President,  Dr.  J.  M.  Selfridge. 

Vice-President,  Dr.  H.  H.  Ingerson. 

General  Secretary,  Dr.  G.  M.  Pease. 

Treasurer,  Dr.  J.  A.  Albertson. 

Censors,  Drs.  Geary,  Liliencrantz,  and  Eckel. 

The  Secretary  next  read  a  communication  from  Dr. 
F.  H.  Thomas,  lately  removed  from  San  Francisco  to 
Colorado  Springs,  Colorado,  in  which  he  gave  a  de- 
scription of  the  place,  and  the  influence  of  its  climate 
upon  asthmatics. 

Dr.  Liliencrantz  presented  and  read  a  paper  entitled, 
"  Notes  on  Hemorrhage  during  Pregnancy." 

Dr.  Selfridge  related  a  case  where  a  placenta  had 
been  retained  for  five  weeks,  and  no  decomposition 
had  taken  place,  and  it  was  finally  discharged. 

Dr.  Geary  was  once  called  to  a  case  where  there 
was  a  slight  hemorrhage,  when,  on  introducing  the 
finger,  it  was  met  by  something  hard  which  scratched. 
On  using  a  speculum  he  found  a  bone  projecting  from 
the  os,  which  he  removed,  and  he  finally  took  away 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  63 

piece  after  piece,  until  the  whole  skeleton  was  re- 
moved ;  all  the  bones  being  clean,  and  free  from  flesh. 
The  hemorrhage  was  slight,  but  ulceration  was  quite 
extensive. 

Dr.  Albertson  thought  that  as  soon  as  the  foetus  is. 
gone  the  membranes  act  as  a  foreign  body,  and  should 
be  removed  as  soon  as  possible. 

Dr.  Pease  related  a  case  of  a  post-mortem  he  once 
made.  The  patient,  an  old  maid,  had  a  large  tumor 
of  the  uterus,  as  was  supposed.  Upon  opening  the 
abdomen,  the  uterus  appeared  nearly  as  large  as  a  hat ; 
this  was  cut  through,  and  revealed  within  the  cavity 
an  ossified  ball  simulating  in  appearance  a  foetal  head. 
One  side  was  a  little  flattened,  and  the  semblance  of 
sutures  was  traceable.  The  size  of  this  mass  was 
nearly  that  of  two  fists.  The  walls  of  the  uterus  were 
much  thickened.  Dr.  Beakley  has  met  with  two  cases- 
in  which  balls  of  hair  were  found  in  the  uterus. 

At  this  point,  as  it  was  getting  late,  it  was  decided 
to  hold  another  meeting,  and  for  that  purpose  an 
adjournment  was  had,  until  eight  o'clock  the  next 
evening. 


NOVEMBER  4,  1875. 

Agreeable  to  adjournment  the  Society  met  at  the 
house  of  the  Secretary,  at  No.  10  Ellis  street.  Dr. 
Selfridge,  President-elect,  occupied  the  chair.  There 
were  present  Drs.  Ingerson,  Beakley,  Liliencrantz> 
Selfridge,  Albertson,  Hughjon,  Geary,  Jenks,  Led- 
yard,  Wilson,  and  Pease.  Dr.  Poulson  was  also 
present. 

Dr.  Selfridge  read  a  paper  upon  Intussusception 
and  he  also  exhibited  a  pathological  specimen  which 
called  forth  the  paper. 


<64  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

Dr.  Albertson  spoke  of  a  case  which  had  been 
relieved  by  the  use  of  Seidlitz  powders.  The  con- 
tents of  several  blue  papers  were  dissolved  and  injected, 
and  afterward  the  contents  of  the  white  papers  were 
given  in  the  same  way,  the  gases  formed  by  their 
union  forcing  their  way  through  the  stricture. 

Dr.  Geary  has  never  met  with  acase  in  his  long  prac- 
tice. He  thinks  there  seems  to  be  something  occult  in 
this,  as  in  other  diseases :  cases  falling  to  some  parties 
and  not  to  others.  He  has  often  noticed  that  when  he 
"had  a  peculiar  case  of  any  kind,  he  was  sure  to  have 
another  very  soon.  Diseases  seem  to  run  in  grooves. 

Dr.  Selfridge  is  aware  that  the  treatment  spoken  of 
"by  Dr.  Albertson  is  sometimes  followed,  but  it  is  a 
dangerous  practice,  because  it  cannot  be  controlled. 

Dr.  Hughson  had  a  case  which  he  diagnosed  as  one 
of  Intussusception,  and  the  patient  got  well.  There 
was  a  discharge  of  decayed  matter  which  he  supposed 
was  the  affected  portion  of  the  intestine  which  had 
sloughed  off. 

Dr.  Pease  related  a  case,  which  was  seen  by 
him  at  an  autopsy,  in  which  seven  feet  of  the  illi- 
um  had  been  drawn  in  to  the  space  of  ten  inches, 
and,  just  above  the  injury,  Nature  had  thrown  out  a 
fistulous  tube,  or  a  new  intestine,  which  had  an  open- 
ing through  it  for  a  distance  of  about  four  inches,  as 
large  as  a  lead-pencil,  and  which  probably  would  have 
been  a  complete  new  passage  had  not  the  patient 
been  tortured  and  drugged  with  turpentine  and  oil, 
until  the  system  could  »tand  it  no  longer,  and  life 
departed  before  the  spontaneous  cure  could  be 
•completed. 

Dr.  Geary  thinks  these  diseases  are  not  capable  of 
being  cured  homceopathically,  and  that  they  are  me- 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  65 

chanical  diseases,  and  must  be  treated  mechanically. 
Some  desultory  conversation  here  followed. 

Dr.  Selfridge,  from  his  experience,  would  place  great 
reliance  upon  Nux  in  this  lesion,  and  also  upon  Lobelia 
injection,  from  its  power  to  relax  muscular  fibre.  Dr. 
Hughson  read  a  paper  upon  Morbus  Brightii,  in  which 
he  recited  some  cases. 

Dr.  Albertson  asked  if  he  examined  the  urine  with 
the  microscope. 

Dr.  Hughson  replied  that  he  had  done  so  in  some 
cases. 

Dr.  Pease  gave  the  case  of  a  man  who  had 
Bright's  disease,  and  had  been  treated  for  some  time 
by  several  Allopathic  physicians.  The  quantity  of 
albumen  in  the  urine  was  about  one  third  of  the  whole. 
He  was  satisfied  that  Arsenicum  was  the  remedy,  and 
continued  it,  without  change.  The  urine  was  exam- 
ined almost  daily,  and  gradually  improved,  until,  in 
three  or  four  months,  there  was  no  albumen  present, 
and  the  dropsical  symptoms  had  disappeared.  The 
urine  was  also  examined  under  the  microscope,  and 
the  casts  were  distinctly  observed.  After  a  lapse  of 
two  or  three  years  the  patient  had  had  no  relapse. 

Dr.  Geary  is  doubtful  if  the  disease  can  be  cured  by 
any  treatment,  if  it  is  actually  a  lesion.,  a  seated  disease 
of  the  kidney,  and  a  structural  change  has  taken 
place. 

Dr.  Liliencrantz  said  that  in  some  puerperal  patients 
albuminuria  was  present,  but  it  was  far  from  being 
Bright's  disease. 

Dr.  Selfridge  spoke  of  post-scarlatina  albuminuria. 

Dr.  Albertson  does  not  consider  albuminuria  after 
scarlet  fever,  and  in  puerperal  cases,  as  structural  dis- 
eases of  the  kidney,  though  the  system,  in  eliminating 


66  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

the  poison  of  these  diseases,  might  get  up  so  much 
irritation  as  to  even  cause  the  urine  to  contain  some 
uriniferous  casts. 

Dr.  Pease  read  a  paper  entitled,  "  Vegetable  Food 
for  Man." 

Dr.  Liliencrantz  said  that  at  times  he  has  dyspepsia, 
and  then  he  cannot  eat  any  meat. 

Dr.  Selfridge,  when  he  has  dyspepsia,  is  always 
worse  from  eating  vegetables ;  particularly  bad  for 
him  are  potatoes.  He  thinks  those  vegetables  which 
grow  in  the  ground  are  worse  than  others. 

Dr.  Pease  spoke  of  the  desirability  of  publishing 
the  transactions  of  the  Society,  that  we  might  be  on 
an  even  footing  with  other  societies,  and  exchange 
transactions  with  them. 

Dr.  Albertson  moved  that  a  committee  of  three  be 
appointed  by  the  Chair,  on  Publication,  to  attend  to 
the  matter. 

The  Chair  appointed  on  this  committee  Drs.  Pease, 
Albertson,  and  Ledyard. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  work, 
and  one  which  he  hoped  would  result  in  great  good 
to  Homoeopathy  on  this  coast.  You  have  called  me 
to  the  presidency,  and  I  have  accepted.  In  order 
that  we  shall  be  recognized  as  the  society  on  this 
coast,  he  hoped  each  of  us  would  exert  himself  to 
prepare  what  would  help  to  instruct  the  others  and 
give  food  for  thought.  He  has  noticed  that  hereto- 
fore a  few  only  have  brought  in  papers,  but  he  hoped 
the  burden  might  not  always  rest  upon  those  few,  but 
that  all  might  bear  a  little  and  lighten  it  for  the  few ; 
or,  at  least,  that  the  few  might  not  feel  that  they  were 
compelled  to  do  the  whole.  Several  papers  were  yet 
unread,  but  owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  hour  it  was 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  6/ 

decided  that  those  papers  could  be  incorporated  in 
the  transactions. 

Dr.  Poulson  had  prepared  papers  on  "  Hydropathy 
applied  to  Homoeopathy  during  the  Treatment  of 
Acute  Diseases." 

.  Dr.  Albertson  had  prepared  a  paper  upon  "  Clinical 
Experience  in  Typhoid  Fever,  with  a  Case." 

Dr.  Eckel  had  a  paper  upon  Epilepsy. 

The  Society  adjourned. 


CLIMATE    OF   COLORADO. 

BY  F.  H.  THOMAS,    M.  D.» 

To  THE  HOMOEOPATHIC  MEDICAL  SOCIETY: 

Gentlemen : — Almost  my  whole  time  since  coming- 
here  has  been  engaged  in  solving  the  question — For- 
what  diseases,  and  at  what  stage  of  such  disease,  is  the 
climate  of  Colorado,  and  particularly  of  El  Paso  Co.* 
beneficial?  Remembering  .the  short  time  already 
taken  in  this  work,  you  will  please  consider  this  as- 
merely  a  preface  to  a  series  of  papers  on  the  same 
subject,  the  substance  of  which  you  may  rely  upon  as 
being  fact,  since  I  have  carefully  avoided  statements 
of  interested  parties,  whether  written  or  oral.  /,. 
though  a  resident  here,  am  not  interested — certainly 
not  at  this  stage  of  the  proceedings — for  a  more 
homesick  man  —  homesick  for  sunny  California  and 
its  still  more  sunny  people  —  than  I  am  you  never 
saw!  Looking  upon  the  map  of  the  United  States- 
you  will  find  that  Colorado  lies  about  equally  on 
either  side  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  very  like  a  pack- 
saddle  upon  a  mule.  "  It  lies  between  the  37th  and 
4ist  parallels  of  north  latitude,  and  the  iO2d  and  logtrt 
meridians  of  west  longitude,  being  bounded  on  the 
north  by  Wyoming  and  Nebraska,  and  on  the  east  by 
Nebraska  and  Kansas,  and  on  the  south  by  New 
Mexico,  and  on  the  west  by  Utah.  The  area  embrac- 
ed forms  nearly  a  square,  containing  about  106,475 
square  miles  or  67,420,000  acres — a  greater  extent  of 


7O  TRANSACTIONS    OF  THE 

country  than  all  of  Great  Britain,  with  a  colony  or 
two  included,  and  quite  as  large  as  New  York,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Massachusetts,  with  New  Jersey  thrown 
in  for  good  measure." 

"  El  Paso  County  is  one  of  the  central  counties  of 
the  Territory,  and  embraces  a  fair  share  of  its  princi- 
pal physical  characteristics  —  mountain,  valley,  and 
plain.  Along  its  northern  border  stretches  the  great 
Colorado  "  Divide,"  a  pine  •  covered  mountain  spur, 
which  takes  its  name  from  the  fact  that  it  separates 
the  sections  of  country  tributary  to  the  chief  rivers  of 
the  Territory  —  the  Platte  in  the  north  and  the  Ar- 
kansas in  the  south.  From  the  "  Divide"  the  county 
has  a  continual  slope  southward,  its  southern  bound- 
ary being  eighteen  miles  north  of  the  Arkansas,  the 
•distance  from  north  to  south  being  about  forty  -  two 
miles. 

This  southward  slope — exposing  the  whole  of  the 
tounty,  like  a  garden-wall,  to  the  full  sunlight — has  a 
marked  effect  upon  its  climatic  characteristics.  The 
distance  from  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  county  to 
the  foot  of  the  mountains  is  about  forty  miles,  and  be- 
yond that  the  county  embraces  about  thirty  miles  of 
mountainous  country,  making  the  total  width  about 
seventy  miles.  The  area  includes  about  1,635,000 
acres,  of  which  125,000  acres  has  been  entered." 

The  town  of  Colorado  Springs,  situated  in  the  cen- 
ter of  El  Paso  County,  at  a  point  where  the  Monu- 
ment Creek  unites  with  the  Fountain  qui  Bouille,  and 
where  the  Ute  Pass  opens  upon  the  plains,  is  built 
upon  a  beautiful  plain,  as  level  as  a  table,  which  has  a 
gentle  slope  from  north  to  south  and  from  west  to 
east.  In  spite  of  the  aforesaid  home-sickness  I  can 
recognize  in  this  the  most  beautiful  town  in  its  way  I 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  7! 

ever  saw.  At  the  north-western  corner  of  the  town 
there  comes  in  a  clear  stream  of  water  which  is  con- 
ducted in  brooklets  through  every  street,  this  being 
possible  by  reason  of  the  gentle  fall  from  north  to 
south  and  from  west  to  east,  making  a  cheery  picture 
in  the  sunlight  and  gentle  music  at  night.  This,  with 
the  wide  streets  planted  on  either,  side,  and,  in  some 
cases,  also  in  the  center,  with  young  growing  trees, 
with  a  gravel  soil,  makes  level  streets  perpetual  and 
muddy  sidewalks  an  impossibility  —  with  a  class  of 
houses  of  which  any  eastern  town  might  be  proud, 
and  with  some  of  the  grandest  scenery  imaginable 
always  in  sight,  it  needs  but  to  be  in  California  to 
make  it  a  paradise.  A  reference  to  engraving  on  back 
of  pages  eight  and  ten,  which  engraving  is  a  very  cor- 
rect one,  will  give  you  an  idea  of  the  situation  of 
the  town,  which  is  a  principal  station  on  the  Denver 
and  Rio  Grande  Railway,  seventy-six  miles  south  of 
Denver  (the  metropolis  of  Colorado  Territory),  and 
forty-two  miles  north  of  Pueblo. 

The  town  takes  its  name  from  numerous  valuable 
mineral  springs  in  the  neighborhood — and  being  in 
the  neighborhood  only,  a  stranger  comes  to  the  con- 
clusion that  Colorado  Springs  is  a  misnomer. 

The  most  important  of  these  are  grouped  together 
about  five  miles  to  the  west,  in  a  beautiful  glen,  to 
which  has  been  given  the  name  Manitou.  These  are 
the  celebrated  "  Boiling  Springs,"  which,  years  ago, 
were  made  known  to  the  world  by  Fremont,  Ruxton, 
and  other  writers.  Formerly  they  were  visited  on 
account  of  their  medicinal  virtues  by  native  tribes  of 
Indians,  who  regarded  them  as  supernatural  phenom- 
ena caused  by  the  direct  action  of  the  Great  Spirit. 
All  of  the  foregoing  I  have  thought  it  necessary  to 


72  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

write  to  give  you  some  idea  of  the  country.  Now  as 
to  its  climate.  It  is  not,  in  my  estimation,  as  pleasant 
to  live  in  as  the  climate  in  many  parts  of  California. 
The  Winters  are  cold.  Considering  the  altitude  of  this 
place  —  5,975  feet  —  we  will  understand  why  it  is  so 
dry.  My  hands  are  parched  and  cracked ;  same  with' 
the  skin  on  my  lips.  My  hair  is  harsh  and  dry,  and 
the  gut  strings  on  a  musical  instrument  I  have  with 
me  take  on  more  change  than  I  have  ever  known 
them  before.  I  will  close  this  paper  with  a  report  of 
a  few  cases  of  Asthma  known  to  me  to  be  as  I  state. 
I  know  of  many  more  than  these  —  but  these  will  do- 
to  illustrate. 

CASE    I. 

Mr.  G.  B.,  aet.  21  years,  in  Jefferson  Co.,  N.  Y.,  was 
a  fine,  healthy  child,  until  three  years  old,  at  which 
time — one  Winter — while  eating  "  popped  corn,"  and 
running  around  the  room,  drew  one  of  the  kernels 
41  unpopped  "  into  his  left  bronchial.  This  remained 
five  weeks,  when,  in  a  fit  of  coughing,  it  was  ejected. 
From  this  time  on  he  had  asthma  in  one  of  its  most 
troublesome  forms.  The  attack  would  come  on  with 
great  dyspnoea  —  coughing,  with  expectoration  of 
frothy  matter,  this  becoming  worse  until  in  about  five 
days  it  would  be  relieved  by  coughing  up  of  yellow 
mucus ;  one  attack  following  quickly  after  another, 
and  for  about  twelve  years  he  never  slept  comfortably 
in  bed.  Coming  to  Colorado  last  November,  he  had 
only  one  bad  attack  soon  after,  and  none  of  it  since 
then.  He  considers  himself  a  well  man  now,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  an  occasional  dream  in  which  the 
devil  of  torment  appears  to  him,  and  he  thinks  him- 
self still  afflicted  with  asthma,  he  is  a  happy  man. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.  73 

CASE    II. 

X.  Y.,  a  German,  exposed  in  time  of  Chicago  fire, 
has  had  a  violent  form  of  asthma  ever  since,  until 
two  months  ago  he  came  here,  and  has  had  but  few 
unwell  days  since.  And  I  could  go  on  and  give  you 
twenty  cases  which  have  come  under  my  observation. 
In  my  next  I  will  give  you  a  more  extended  report  on 
this  disease,  and  also  the  effect  of  the  climate  upon, 
tuberculosis  of  the  lungs. 

CASE  III. 

S.  S.  Williams,  Esq.,  aet.  50,  a  prominent  citizen  of 
Dixon,  111.;  Vice-president  of  Lee  County  National 
Bank,  had  a  peculiar  attack  every  year  for  about  fifteen 
years.    It  came  about  the  beginning  of  the  rainy  sea- 
son, but  always  within  forty-eight  hours  of  Sept.  ist, 
and  lasted  for  six  weeks,  or  until  frost  came.    Dyspnoea,, 
coughing,  wheezing,  expectoration  of  frothy  matter — 
and  later  on  of  yellow  mucus  —  sneezing,  lachryma- 
tion,  coryza;  indeed,  a  thoroughly -developed  case  of 
hay-fever  with  spasmodic  asthma. 

So  distressing  was  the  dyspnoea  that  no  sleep  could 
be  had  through  all  this  period  of  six  weeks,  except 
when  sitting  up  in  one  chair  and  leaning  his  head  for- 
ward on  the  back  of  another;  arid  the  attack  would 
leave  him  so  exhausted  that  he  was  only  well  when 
Springtime  came. 

He  came  to  Colorado  Springs  ist  of  August,  1874, 
about  a  month  before  the  usual  time  of  his  sickness, 
and  remaining  several  months,  had  not  one  symptom 
of  the  disease.  He  has  passed  the  same  months  this 
year,  and  with  like  results.  I  maintain  this  to  be  a 
peculiar  case,  in  that  there  was  present  the  asthma, 
and  a  complete  cure  of  it  with  the  hay-fever.  During 


74  TRANSACTIONS. 

all  the  time  of  his  distress  he  obtained  no  amelioration 
from  the  ordinary  asthma  palliatives. 

CASE  IV. 

G.  H.  Stewart,  Esq.,  set.  50,  President  of  the  First 
National  Bank,  Colorado  Springs,  and  formerly  of 
Beaver  Dam,  Wisconsin,  has  had  for  several  years  the 
following:  dyspnoea,  as  though  he  had  "been  running 
a  race ;"  "  breathing  didn't  seem  to  do  him  any  good  " 
— all  this  brought  on  by  a  hard,  dry  cough  which  con- 
tinued until  relieved  by  expectoration  ;  he  then  would 
be  thoroughly  exhausted,  and  have  the  dyspnoea ; 
would  wake  up  at  night  "  pawing  the  air  "  and  gasp- 
ing for  breath. 

Mr.  Stewart  has  been  here  three  years,  and  the 
attacks  have  grown  gradually  weaker  until  now  he 
is  comparatively  comfortable,  and  he  only  has  the 
trouble  after  taking  cold. 

Mr.  S.,  from  observations  of  his  own,  thinks  there 
are  localities  in  Colorado  curative  to  special  forms  of 
asthma.  I  will  add  that  the  patient  could  always  find 
relief  at  night  from  inhalation  of  fumes  from  burning 
saltpetre  and  Belladonna  leaves. 


INTUSSUSCEPTION. 

BY   J.    M.    SELFRIDGE,    M.  D.,    OAKLAND,    CAL. 


The  term,  "  Intussusception,"  according  to  Dunglin- 
son,  "  is  derived  from  two  Latin  words,  intus,  within, 
and  suscipio,  to  take."  Hence  "  Intussusception  occurs 
when  one  portion  of  the  intestine  passes  into  another. 

This,  doubtless,  is  produced  by  the  contraction  of 
a  band  of  the  circular  fibers,  while,  at  the  same  time, 
the  peristaltic  action  of  the  intestines  is  greatly  in- 
creased, thus  enveloping  or  receiving  the  constricted 
portion  into  that  which  is  normal ;  and  when  once 
the  Intussusception  is  commenced  it  is  limited  only 
by  the  inability  of  the  intestine  to  receive  more. 

When  this  action  is  normal  or  downward,  the  upper 
part  of  the  intestine  is  forced  into  the  lower,  thus  con- 
stituting what  is  called  "  Progressive  Intussusception." 
But  when  this  action  is  abnormal  or  inverted,  the 
lower  portion  is  forced  into  the  upper,  when  it  is 
called  "  Retrograde  Intussusception." 

The  former  is  said  to  be  by  far  "  the  more  fre- 
quent, while  Retrograde  Intussusception  is  said  to  be 
~very  rare." 

This  statement  receives  strength  from  the  fact  that 
out  of  fifty-nine  cases  collected  by  De  Haven  only 
three  were  retrograde. 

But.  notwithstanding  this  oft-repeated  statement  by 
writers,  I  am  of  the  opinion  that,  whenever  Intussus- 
ception occurs  in  the  ascending  colon,  it  is  always 
retrograde.  There,  of  course,  the  upper  portion,  so 


76  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

far  as  position  in  the  body  is  concerned,  is  forced  into 
the  lower;  but  "upper"  and  "lower,"  in  the  bowels,, 
are  merely  relative  terms.  For,  when  we  say  the 
normal  or  downward  action  of  the  bowels,  we  mean 
the  direction  taken  by  the  peristaltic  action  from  the 
pyloric  to  the  anal  orifice  ;  and  since  invaginations  of 
the  ascending  colon  are  just  the  reverse  of  this,  they 
are,  of  course,  always  retrograde.  This  was  found  to- 
be  the  condition  in  at  least  two  of  the  six  cases  I  had 
the  opportunity  of  treating. 

The/0*W  at  which  Intussusception  most  frequent- 
ly occurs  is  at  the  "  ileo  -  ccecal  junction."  Of  forty- 
three  cases  reported  by  Dr.  Thompson,  of  Edinburgh,, 
in  twenty-two  cases  it  occurred  in  the  small,  and  in 
twenty-one  it  occurred  in  the  large  intestines,  or  in. 
both.  In  De  Haven's  analysis  of  fifty-nine  cases  it 
was  seated  in  the  small  intestines  in  twenty-three.  In 
six  cases  treated  by  myself  two  were  in  the  small 
intestines,  three  in  the  ascending  colon,  and  one  at 
the  ileo-coecal  junction. 

But,  of  two  hundred  and  fifty-eight  cases*  analyzed 
by  Brinton,  the  Intussusception  was  ileo-coecal  in  fif- 
ty-six per  cent.,  iliac  in  twenty-eight  per  cent.,  jejunal 
in  four  per  cent,  and  in  the  colon  in  twelve  per  cent. 

When  it  occurs  at  the  ileo -ccecal  junction,  the 
amount  of  intestine  invaginated  is  sometimes  simply 
appalling. 

Dr.  Aitken  mentions  a  case  that  is  recorded  in  the 
seventy-sixth  volume  of  the  "  Philosophical  Transac- 
tions," in  which  "  the  inversion  commenced  at  the 
ileo-coecal  junction,  and  progressed  until  the  whole  of 
the  ascending  transverse  and  descending  colon  were 
carried  into  the  sigmoid  flexure  and  rectum,  and  the 

*  See  Flint's  Practice. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  77 

ileo  -  colic  valve  was  in  apposition  with  the  anal 
aperture,  so  that  the  contents  of  the  small  intestines 
passed  at  once  from  the  ilium  through  the  anus."  A 
somewhat  similar  case  is  recorded  by  Dr.  Cunning- 
ham in  the  second  volume  of  the  Medical  Gazette  for 
1838.  The  ilium  and  coecum  were  impacted  into  the 
transverse  and  descending  colon,  and  passed  low  down 
into  the  rectum." 

Dr.  Smith,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  quotes  a  case  from 
"  Dr.  Jones,"  in  which  "  a  child  four  months  old  lived 
six  weeks  after  invagination  commenced,  and  seven- 
teen days  after  the  ilium  had  protruded  from  the 
anus.* 

From  the  statistics  I  have  been  able  to  collect  it  is 
clear  that  Intussusception  occurs  most  frequently  in 
infancy. 

According  to  the  record  kept  by  Dr.  Smith,  the 
greatest  number  of  cases  occurred  between  the  "  sec- 
ond and  third  months  of  infantile  life."  "  Of  forty- 
seven  cases  only  eighteen  occurred  between  the  ages 
of  one  and  twelve  years."  In  De  Haven's  cases  the 
mean  age  was  eighteen  years — the  youngest  was  three 
months — the  oldest  sixty  -  five  years."  In  six  cases 
which  occurred  in  my  own  practice  five  were  under 
nine  years,  three  of  which  were  infants.  The  young- 
est case  was  six  weeks  old,  which,  so  far  as  I  know, 
is  the  youngest  case  on  record.  The  oldest  was  aged 
fifty-five. 

Males  are  more  liable  to  this  disease  than  females. 
In  Dr.  Smith's  cases  "  thirty  -  two  were  males,  and 
twenty -two  females."  Of  De  Haven's  cases  thirty- 
four  were  males  and  twenty  -  five  females."  In  my 
own  cases  four  were  males  and  two  females. 

*  See  Flint's  Practice. 


78  TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE 

SYMPTOMS. 

The  first  symptom  of  Intussusception  is  pain,  which 
is  usually  referred  to  a  fixed  point,  if  the  patient  be 
old  enough  to  describe  it.  At  the  outset  it  is  generally 
paroxysmal,  but  soon  becomes  constant,  with  par- 
oxysms of  increased  pain — caused,  no  doubt,  by  the 
peristaltic  action  forcing  more  of  the  intestine  into 
the  intussuscepted  portion.  The  painful  point  soon 
becomes  tender,  which  increases  more  and  more  as 
the  hours  wear  on.  Obstinate  constipation  is  always 
present,  although,  soon  after  the  occurrence  of  Intus- 
susception, there  is  generally  one  passage ;  and  if  it 
be  in  the  colon,  especially  in  children,  there  are  fre- 
quent stools  of  bloody  mucus. 

There  is  also  a  very  constant  symptom  which  is 
early  recognized  when  the  colon  is  implicated,  viz :  a 
circumscribed  tumor  in  the  right  iliac  fossa,  or  in 
the  track  of  the  colon.  When  this  is  noticed  "  in  the 
right  iliac  fossa,  the  probability  is  that  it  is  at  the 
ileo-ccecal  junction."  (Goss.) 

Peritonitis  soon  manifests  itself  at  the  seat  of  the 
invagination,  and  sometimes  becomes  general. 

The  pulse  increases  in  frequency,  and  becomes 
more  or  less  corded,  while  vomiting  is  almost  always 
constant,  and,  in  many  cases,  becomes  stercoraceous. 
But  stercoraceous  vomiting  is  not  always  pathogno- 
monic  of  Intussusception ;  for  I  once  had  a  case  of 
peritonitis  accompanying  a  relapse  of  typhoid  fever, 
in  which  this  symptom  was  very  prominent  for  three 
or  four  days.  About  a  year  ago  I  saw  a  case,  in  con- 
sultation with  Dr.  N.,  in  which  there  was  much  vom- 
iting of  this  character,  although,  after  a  very  careful 
examination,  we  could  detect  no  invagination. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  79 

The  symptoms  here  given  are  such  as  are  gene- 
rally recognized  in  cases  of  Intussusception,  but  I  am 
inclined  to  think  they  do  not  describe  those  present 
when  the  small  intestines  alone  are  invaginated,  but 
not  strangulated.  I  have  had  but  two  cases  of  the 
kind  referred  to,  but  the  symptoms  attending  them 
were  so  unlike  those  present  when  the  colon  is  the 
part  affected  that  I  am  inclined  to  think  they  have 
hitherto  been  either  overlooked  or  have  been  attrib- 
uted to  some  cause  other  than  Intussusception. 

My  first  case  of  this  kind  was  a  girl  nine  years  old. 
She  had  paroxysms — not  so  much  of  pain,  but  a  kind 
of  nervous  state — which  resembled  a  slight  spasm,  and 
was  called  a  species  of  hysteria  by  Dr.  S.,  of  San 
Jose,  who  saw  her  in  consultation.  During  these 
paroxysms  the  pulse  had  a  thready  flutter;  the  breath- 
ing was  hurried,  the  face  became  blanched,  and  the 
patient  had  the  appearance  of  approaching  syncope, 
yet  did  not  faint,  although  she  complained  of  a  sink- 
ing, faint  feeling  in  the  stomach.- 

Such  symptoms,  I  know,  are  produced  by  anything 
that  irritates  the  ganglionic  nerves.  For  example,  I 
once  had  a  little  patient  who,  after  swallowing  a 
quantity  of  wool,  had  precisely  such  symptoms  every 
time  the  peristaltic  action  of  the  bowels  moved  the 
wool. 

Thus,,  we  see  that  apparently  slight  causes  acting 
on  these  delicate  nerves  often  produce  alarming  symp- 
toms. And  I  have  no  doubt  that  Intussusception,  of 
the  kind  referred  to,  kills  these  little  patients  by  the 
shock  it  gives  the  ganglionic  nerve  centers. 

Every  surgeon  knows  that  patients  are  frequently 
killed  by  the  nervous  shock  that  follows  mechanical 
injuries  which,  in  themselves,  are  often  trivial ;  and  it 


8O  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

certainly  was  the  shock  that  killed  the  two  patients 
under  my  care,  for  in  neither  case  was  there  strangu- 
lation or  inflammation. 

If  this  be  true,  will  it  not  account  for  many  cases 
of  death  "  from  obscure  causes  ?  "  Will  it  not  also 
account  for  those  Intussusceptions  which  Flint,  Ait- 
ken,  Rokitansky,  and  others  suppose  "  occur  in  the 
last  moments  of  life?"  And  will  it  not  also  account 
for  the  "volvuli "  of  the  two  hundred  or  three  hund- 
red children  who  died,  and  were  examined  by  Louis 
in  the  Sal-petriere  Hospital,  "  without  any  inflamma- 
tion of  the  tissues,"  and  in  whose  "  history  during  life 
there  were  no  circumstances  which  led  to  the  suspi- 
cion that  these  children  died  of  Intussusception  ?  "  * 

My  candid  belief  is,  that  neither  strangulation  nor 
inflammation  are  necessary  to  induce  fatal  results  in 
such  cases  ;  but  that  it  is  caused  by  the  sickening, 
prostrating  shock,  which  this  abnormal  condition  of 
the  small  intestines  gives  the  ganglionic  nerve  centers. 

DIAGNOSIS. 

The  diagnosis  of  this  affection  is  often  difficult. 
Impaction  of  faeces  may  be  confounded  with  it,  but  its 
symptoms  are  much  less  severe. 

"  The  affection,"  says  Gross,  "with  which  it  is  most 
liable  to  be  confounded  is  strangulated  hernia,  for 
whenever  the  case  is  one  of  sudden  occurrence  the 
symptoms  of  the  two  diseases  are  absolutely  identical." 

When  the  part  invaginated  is  in  the  small  intestines 
it  might  easily  be  confounded  with  diaphragmatic,  but 
not  with  inguinal  or  femoral  hernia. 

In  Intussusception  of  the  large  intestine  the  well- 
defined  tumor  already  referred  to,  being  of  such  diag- 

•  See  Aitken's  Practice. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  8 1 

nostic  value,  is  not  liable  to  be  mistaken  for  inguinal 
hernia. 

The  passage  of  gall-stones  has  many  symptoms  in 
common  with  Intussusception  ;  but  the  "  existence  of 
,bile  in  the  urine,  and  of  icterus  or  an  icterode  hue  of 
the  conjunctiva  and  skin,  and  the  retardation  of  the 
pulse"*  are  sufficiently  characteristic  to  determine  the 
nature  of  the  disease. 

.  It  may  be  distinguished  from  the  passage  of  urin- 
ary calculi  by  the  fact  that  the  pain  in  such  cases 
usually  follows  the  course  of  the  ureters,  and  in  the 
male  there  is  always  retraction  of  the  testicle. 

PROGNOSIS. 

The  prognosis  of  this  disease  is,  to  say  the  least, 
-extremely  doubtful.  Under  the  use  of  appropriate 
remedies,  however,  evolution  has  sometimes  .taken 
place.  In  some  instances  sloughing  of  the  invaginat- 
•ed  part  occurs,  and  the  patient  recovers;  and  in  a 
very  few  cases  the  knife  has  afforded  the  necessary 
relief. 

TREATMENT. 

The  object  of  treatment  in  this  disease  is  the  speedy 
restoration  of  the  intussuscepted  gut  to  its  normal 
condition — the  alleviation  of  pain — the  prevention  or 
cure  of  inflammation — or,  failing  in  all  of  these,  the 
protection  of  the  system  against  the  depressing  influ- 
ence of  mortification. 

To  induce  evolution  Hippocrates  recommended  the 
inflation  of  the  bowels  with  large  quantities  of  air ; 
which  practice  has  been  followed  by  others,  and  in 
some  instances  with  the  happiest  results.  Of  twenty- 
eight  cases  reported  by  Dr.  Osborne,  seven  recovered 

*  See  Flint. 


82  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

— three  of  which  recoveries  were  effected  by  inflation 
of  the  colon  with  air.* 

"  Dr.  Murphy  relieved  one  of  his  own  children  in. 
this  manner." 

"  Dr.  Greig,  of  Dundee,  used  this  method  in  numer- 
ous instances  with  success."  (Edinburgh  Monthly 
Medical  Journal  for  October,  1864.)* 

My  preference,  however,  is  for  large  injections  of 
warm  water,  in  quantities  varying  from  two  to  four 
quarts,  with  the  addition  of  from  two  to  four  drachms 
of  Tine.  Lobelia,  according  to  age.  The  reason  for 
my  preference  is,  that  it  has  all  the  power  of  air  for 
distention,  with  the  additional  advantage  of  being  an 
emollient ;  and  with  Lobelia  added,  thoroughly  relax- 
es the  spasm  of  the  muscular  fibers,  thus  enhancing 
the  chances  of  recovery.  And  even  though  it  should 
fail  to  produce  evolution,  its  emollient  properties  assist 
in  reducing  inflammation.  While  these  means  should 
be  commenced  early  and  used  perseveringly  the  ad- 
ministration of  Aconite  should  not  be  forgotten — 
especially  if  there  be  fever,  with  dry,  hot  skin,  thirst, 
etc. 

If,  however,  "  the  inflammation  should  extend  to 
the  whole  peritoneal  cavity,  and  there  be  much  metor- 
ism  and  general  tenderness,  accompanied  with  vomit- 
ing, vertigo,  burning  in  the  abdomen,  constant  colic, 
etc.,  Belladonna,  internally  and  locally,  in  the  form  of 
an  ointment,  applied  to  the  whole  abdomen,  is  recom- 
mended by  Dr.  Dufresne,  of  Geneva.! 

I  have  treated  the  symptoms  just  described  with 
Belladonna  internally,  and  fomentations  of  warm  water 
externally,  with  success,  but  have  never  tried  the 
ointment. 

*  Sec  Aitken 
,    f  See  /Art  Medical,  1860. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  83 

To  allay  pain,  which  is  always  excruciating,  I  have 
generally  given  what  may  be  condemned  by  many 
Homoeopathic  physicians,  viz :  some  form  of  opium. 
It  not  only  quiets  pain,  but  also  the  peristaltic  action 
of  the  intestines,  thus  preventing  an  increase  of  the 
Intussusception. 

But,  whenever  there  is  any  apprehension  of  ap- 
proaching gangrene  in  the  strangulated  part,  Arsenic 
is  undoubtedly  the  sovereign  remedy.  It  is  a  Sam- 
son in  its  way — no  less  for  its  power  to  prevent  gan- 
grene than  its  ability  to  support  and  protect  the 
system  against  the  shock  it  receives  from  the  dying 
tissues.  Its  use  should  not  be  deferred  too  long ;  for 
in  a  case  in  which  I  performed  the  operation  of  gas- 
trotomy  sloughing  of  the  peritoneal  coat  had  com- 
menced in  three  and  a  half  days ;  and  in  case  No.  5,, 
which  I  shall  presently  mention,  not  only  mortifica- 
tion, but  sloughing,  was  accomplished  in  seven  days. 

Gastrotomy  is  recommended  by  Dr.  Benjamin  Phil- 
ips as  a  dernier  resort ;  but  out  of  twenty-seven  cases 
collected  by  him,  in  which  the  operation  was  per- 
formed, only  two  were  successful.  Hence  it  is  gene- 
rally conceded  by  the  majority  of  surgeons  to  be  an 
operation  of  doubtful  expediency. 

CASES. 

My  first  case  of  this  disease  occurred  in  a  child  four 
and  a  half  months  old.  The  attack  was  sudden,  and 
without  any  premonition,  the  child  having  been  per- 
fectly well  from  birth — not  even  having  the  colic,  to- 
which  infants  are  usually  liable.  He  died  on  the  third 
day,  in  terrific  convulsions.  The  autopsy  revealed  an 
Intussusception  of  the  ascending  colon,  of  the  retro- 
grade variety. 


34  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

My  second  case  was  a  girl  nine  years  old.  The 
symptoms  were  of  that  obscure  character  already  men- 
tioned. The  autopsy  showed  three  separate  invagi- 
nations  in  the  jejunum  and  ilium. 

Case  No.  3  was  in  an  infant  six  weeks  old.  The 
symptoms  in  this  case  were  also  of  the  obscure  kind 
before  mentioned.  It  died  in  forty-eight  hours,  as  if 
in  a  swoon.  The  autopsy  revealed  seven  points  of 
invagination  in  the  small  intestines. 

Case  No.  4  was  a  little  girl  four  years  of  age.  In 
this  case,  after  due  consultation  was  had  with  three 
other  physicians,  the  operation  of  gastrotomy  was  per- 
formed, but  too  late  to  afford  satisfactory  results,  death 
occurring  two  hours  later.  The  peritoneal  coat  had 
already  commenced  sloughing.  The  disease  in  this 
case  was  seated  in  the  ascending  colon,  and  was  retro- 
grade. 

As  I  propose  to  give  case  No.  5  more  in  detail,  I 
will  first  mention  case  No.  6.  It  was  an  infant,  six 
months  old,  with  all  the  symptoms  of  Intussusception 
of  the  ascending  colon,  including  the  tumor  in  the 
right  iliac  region,  and  also  "small  muco-sanguinolent" 
discharges.  After  three  days  of  suffering,  it  recov- 
ered. Warm-water  enemas,  with  warm  fomentations 
applied  externally,- and  Nux  Vomica  administered  in- 
ternally, were  the  remedies  used. 

During  the  afternoon  of  October  I4th,  1868,  I  was 
called  to  see  Mr.  J.  M.,  aged  55,  of  Brooklyn  Town- 
ship, Alameda  County.  He  was  a  man  of  robust 
health,  medium  height,  florid  complexion,  and  weighed 
about  165  pounds.  Constipation  of  the  bowels  was 
habitual.  About  a  week  previous,  while  at  the  State 
Fair,  he  had  a  severe  attack  of  colic,  which  was  re- 
lieved by  a  few  doses  of  Hoffman's  Anodyne.  On 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  85 

this  occasion  he  was  taken  suddenly  with  what  he 
supposed  was  a  similar  attack,  which  gradually  in- 
creased in  severity  until  my  arrival  at  his  ranch,  five 
miles  from  my  office.  The  pain  being  fixed  and  con- 
stant, I  gave  him  Discorea  ist,  every  fifteen  minutes, 
but  without  relief;  on  the  contrary,  he  grew  rapidly 
worse.  I  remained  with  him  all  night,  during  which 
time  he  had  one  constipated  passage  from  the  bowels, 
but  with  no  relief.  I  gave  successive  doses  of  Nuxr 
and  toward  morning,  the  pain  being  almost  intolera- 
ble, I  gave  an  eighth  of  a  grain  of  Morph.  Sulph., 
and  repeated  the  dose  every  hour  until  the  patient 
slept.  His  sleep,  however,  was  frequently  disturbed 
by  paroxysms  of  pain.  In  the  morning,  some  fullness 
was  observed  in  the  region  of  the  ascending  colon- 
Intussusception  was  suspected  ;  and,  there  being  some 
febrile  movement,  Aconite  was  prescribed.  During 
the  afternoon,  Dr.  P.,  of  Oakland,  was  called  in  con- 
sultation, but  decided  it  to  be  a  case  of  impaction  of 
fasces.  The  pulse  at  this  time  was  no,  skin  hot, 
thirst,  etc. ;  the  pain  constant,  but  the  intensity  some- 
what lessened  by  the  Morphine  given  in  the  morning. 
Aconite  was  continued.  On  visiting  my  patient  on 
the  morning  of  the  i6th,  an  elongated,  oval  tumor 
was  very  apparent  in  the  track  of  the  ascending  colon. 
My  previous  suspicions  were  now  fully  confirmed,  and 
I  informed  my  patient  that  his  case  was  not  one  of 
impaction,  but  Intussusception.  From  my  past  expe- 
rience, I  concluded  the  only  hope  for  the  patient  was 
gastrotomy,  and  consequently  recommended  it.  After 
apprising  him  of  the  danger  of  the  operation,  I  gave 
him  an  enema  of  four  quarts  of  warm  water,  with  half 
an  ounce  of  Tinct.  Lobelia,  and  left  him  making  his 
will,  while  I  went  to  obtain  counsel,  which  I  procured 
in  the  persons  of  three  "  regular  "  physicians. 


86  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

When  we  arrived  at  the  bedside  of  the  patient,  two 

"hours  later,  we  found  the   pain  much  less,  the  pulse 

•quite  soft,  and  the  frequency  reduced  to  ninety  per 

minute.      This  so  changed  the  whole  aspect  of  the 

case  that  the  opinion  arrived  at  by  the  council,  viz  : 

^imp  action  of  faeces,  was  not  to  be  wondered  at.     My 

-own  opinion,  however,  remained  the  same. 

The  operation  was  very  wisely  deferred,  but  the 
'enemata  were  perseveringly  kept  up,  with  warm 
•fomentations  over  the  bowels,  while  at  the  same  time 
Aconite  and  Arsenicum  were  given  alternately  by  the 
mouth. 

On  the  i  yth,  Dr.  B.,  of  San  Francisco,  was  sent  for 
as  counsel.  Not  knowing  what  hour  to  expect  him  I 
was  not  present  when  he  arrived,  but  the  following  let- 
ter will  explain  his  views  : 

"  MY  DEAR  SIR: — I  have  seen  Mr.  P.,  and  the  case 
appears  to  me  to  be  an  impaction  of  faeces  in  the  as- 
cending colon.  The  character  of  the  pulse  and  the 
appearance  of  the  tongue  do  not  indicate  sufficient 
disturbance  of  the  system  to  lead  to  the  idea  of  In- 
tussusception. 

"  I  have  heard  the  history  of  the  case,  and,  as  far  as 
Mr.  P.  knows,  what  you  have  been  doing. 

"  I  should  recommend  you  to  give  him  a  large  dose 
of  Hyd.  Submur.,  say,  one  scruple,  with  a  grain  of 
Podophyllin,  with  or  without  a  drop  or  two  of  Croton 
Oil.  After  he  had  taken  this  for  an  hour,  I  would 
give  him  two  drachms  of  Sp.  Terebinth  in  six  drachms 
of  Ol.  Ricini,  and  repeat  it  every  hour  until  you  get 
the  bowels  to  act' 

"At  the  same  time,  I  would  give  him  large  stimu- 
lating enemata,  one  ounce  of  Ol.  Terebinth,  in  yelk 
of  egg  emulsion.  I  would  perseveringly  throw  up 


s 


\ 


/    f'ftfo//     /'n.\/(/w     if  fir.  /•  />'f//n///t\    rt/    f'tt/tir/   f  h/r . 

2     .\/f:\'f •///*•/ 'I'  .»   .//t/>f//r//\-       /r/////////////.v 

•  /     /'W/trt/i    rt/   f  tjfutt    //«•//  .\-fittfr//tf'f/       * /rtntff/ //Mf/f-     fit//. 
6    /?' /ttff///\  ftf  //tf     /fro    ft/riff/    r'f/\'f 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  87 

these  injections,  so  as  to  assist  the  action  of  the  med- 
icine by  the  mouth. 

"  I  am  sorry  not  to  have  met  you.  I  telegraphed 
you  from  the  city,  and  called  at  your  office  in  passing 
through  Oakland. 

"  I  shall  be  glad  to  hear  how  the  case  goes  on,  and 
remain 

Yours,  truly, 

THOS.B." 

This  treatment  being  in  accordance  with  the  views 
>of  two  members  of  the  previous  council,  great  press- 
ure was  brought  to  bear  by  the  patient's  influential 
friends  to  induce  me  to  give  the  Croton  Oil.  Much 
against  my  better  judgment,  I  gave  half  a  drop  in 
-crumb-of-bread  pill,  on  the  i8th.  It  excited  severe 
retching,  with  vomiting  of  stercoraceous  matter,  which 
.subsided  after  a  few  hours,  when  the  former  treatment 
was  resumed. 

On  the  2  ist,  seven  days  from  the  commencement  of 
the  attack,  the  patient  had  a  small,  dark,  very  fetid 
•discharge.  From  this  day  on  he  had  two  or  three 
passages  a  day,  until  the  25th,  when  they  became  very 
frequent.  On  the  2/th,  they  were  not  only  frequent, 
but  very  copious.  On  the  29th,  he  became  very  rest- 
less and  irritable,  pulse  107 ;  and,  on  the  evening  of 
the  3Oth,  while  at- stool,  he  jokingly  said  to  his  nurse, 
"  Hollo,  Bob,  there  goes  a  bologna  !  "  and,  sure  enough, 
he  passed  what  you  here  see ;  about  two  feet  of  the 
colon,  with  a  portion  of  the  mesentery.  [The  writer 
.  here  exhibited  a  wet  pathological  specimen  of  the 
-colon,  which  is  well  represented  by  the  lithograph.] 

I  saw  the  patient  the   other  day,  just  seven  years 
.-since  this  occurrence,  and  he  informed  me  he  had  en- 


88  TRANSACTIONS. 

joyed  uniformly  good  health,  and  that  his  bowels  had 
been  perfectly  regular  ever  since  he  passed  that  "  bo- 
logna'' 

I  find  470  cases  of  Intussusception,  of  which  men- 
tion is  made  in  the  pages  of  different  writers.  Of  this 
number  sixty-six  terminated  by  sloughing.  Of  these 
sixty-six,  forty-three  are  reported  by  Dr.  Thompson,, 
of  Edinburgh  ;  all  recovered.  (See  Dr.  Harris'  paper, 
N.  Y.  Jour.  Med.,  1853.)  One  was  reported  by  Dr. 
Hare,  to  the  Pathological  Society,  London,  1862;  re- 
covered. One  is  mentioned  by  Prof.  Gross,  in  his 
work  on  surgery ;  recovered.  One  was  reported  by 
Prof.  Van  Buren,  to  the  N.  Y.  Pathological  Society  ; 
recovered.  One  by  Prof.  Peaslee,  to  the  N.  Y.  Acad- 
emy of  Medicine ;  recovered.  Dr.  Havens  reports 
twelve  cases  in  the  American  Journal  Medical  Sci- 
ences, October.  1855,  of  which  ten  recovered.  Dr. 
Smith  reports  seven,  all  of  which  recovered,  and  one 
by  myself,  making  sixty-five  recoveries  out  of  sixty- 
seven  cases  of  sloughing. 

There  are,  doubtless,  many  lessons  deducible  from 
the  consideration  of  this  subject ;  but  there  is  one 
which  seems  to  me  to  be  especially  obvious,  viz :  that 
where  the  vital  forces,  under  favorable  circumstances, 
are  able  successfully  to  resist  the  onset  of  this,  one  of 
the  most  formidable  of  diseases,  we  ought,  with  the 
mechanical  and  medicinal  remedies  known  to  our  art, 
early,  intelligently,  and  persistently  applied,  so  to  assist 
those  forces  as  to  reduce  the  great  mortality  of  this- 
disease. 


MORBUS    BRIGHTII. 

BY  W.  A.  HUGHSON,  M.  D.,  SACRAMENTO,  CAL. 


The  difficulty  attendant  upon  and  the  unsatisfactory- 
results  of  the  treatment  of  a  case  of  Morbus  Brightii, 
which  must  be  recognized  and  acknowledged  by  every 
medical  practitioner,  arises,  in  the  first  place,  from  the 
intractability  of  the  morbid  conditions  to  the  rectify- 
ing influence  of  the  most  aptly-applied  remedies  ;  but. 
we  feel  that  by  far  the  greater  obstacle  is  due  to  the 
non-recognition  of  the  malady  in  its  incipient  stages- 
It  is  allowed  to  progress  to  a  considerable  extent  be- 
fore attention  is  prominently  called  to  the  real  state  of 
affairs;  and  this  time  is  frequently  a  period  beyond 
which  recovery  is  improbable,  if  not  impossible. 

Our  brethren  who  so  implicitly  pin  their  faith  to 
symptomatology  may  ridicule  the  idea  that  any  ad- 
vantage whatever  is  to  be  gained  by  a  knowledge  oF 
the  actual  change  going  on  in  the  renal  region,  they 
judging  only  from  the  symptoms  prominently  pre- 
sented to  the  eye  of  the  examiner,  and  felt  by  the  pa- 
tient himself.  We  acknowledge  that  this  is  the  only 
true  mode  of  prescribing,  but,  knowing  the  condition 
of  the  parts  affected,  we  can,  and  will,  make  a  more 
thorough  search,  and  in  this  manner  bring  to  light 
very  many  symptoms  that  would  otherwise  pass  un- 
heeded and  unnoticed. 

A  lack  of  sensation   in   any  organ   or  part    is   not 
likely  to  be  noticed  by  either  physician  or  patient,  for 


•90  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

a  lack  of  sensation  of  a  painful  or  noticeable  charac- 
ter is  one  of  the  attendants  upon  a  perfect  state  of 
health.  Unless  tested,  even  in  perfect  health,  no 
knowledge  of  the  existence  of  any  organ  in  the  hu- 
man system  is  realized  by  an  individual,  the  whole 
machinery  of  the  human  frame  working  so  silently 
and  smoothly  that  no  jar  or  friction  retards  the  silent 
play  of  the  complex  mechanism,  nor  is  there  the 
.slightest  irregularity  in  the  production  and  supply  of 
the  motor  power.  It,  then,  is  not  at  all  surprising 
that  if,  from  a  degenerated  condition  of  any  organ,  its 
sensation  is  diminished,  it  becoming  even  less  sensi- 
tive than  in  health,  refusing  to  respond  to  the  tests 
usually  resorted  to  for  diagnostic  purposes,  its  condi- 
tion be  unnoticed  and  unregarded. 

The  insidious  approach  of  this  dread  disease,  show- 
ing itself  altogether  for  a  great  length  of  time  only  in 
Its  sympathetic  actions  upon  other  organs,  frequently 
remote  from  the  actual  seat  of  the  trouble,  is  apt  to 
not  only  blind  the  eyes  of  the  examiner,  but  cause  him 
to  be  careless  in  reference  to  his  case.  This  effect  is 
also  rendered  more  probable  from  the  fact  that  almost 
precisely  the  same  symptoms  which  occur  in  Morbus 
Brightii  are  produced  by  a  diversity  of  causes. 

The  stomach  is  doctored  for  dyspepsia  ;  the  liver  is 
loaded  with  remedies  because  the  poor  patient  "  is 
bilious;  "  dumb  ague  of  years'  standing  has  its  quota, 
and  almost  every  name  in  the  whole  vocabulary  of 
medical  terms  is  given  to  the  trouble  and  doctored  for 
the  name  with  the  scientific  remedy.  But  of  them  all, 
the  poor  liver  is  the  most  liberally  dealt  with,  for  nine- 
ty-nine cases  out  of  a  hundred  of  them  are  generously 
donated  the  euphonious  cognomen  "  bilious,"  and  the 
poor,  deluded  patient  is  soothed  on  toward  the  grave 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  9! 

In  the  blissful  belief  that  he  is  the  victim  of  too  much 
bile.  Bile,  the  scape-goat  upon  whose  willing  and 
accommodating  back  is  loaded  the  sins  of  ignorance 
so  fearfully  common  among  the  self-styled  representa- 
tives of  the  medical  profession,  quietly  submits  to  hav- 
ing all  the  ills  of  nature  laid  at  its  door,  only  protest- 
ing by  spewing  out  the  profusion  of  cholagogues  that 
are  in  a  strict  and  scientific  manner  poured  into  the 
doomed  victim. 

My  attention  has  been  called  more  particularly  to 
this  point,  and  I  am  led  to  take  this  view  of  the  sub- 
ject from  experience,  which  has  been  both  happy  and 
unhappy  in  its  results,  one  patient  dying  and  two  oth- 
ers recovering. 

Case  i,  which  was  the  one  which  proved  fatal,  had 
been  ailing  for  about  four  years,  during  which,  travel, 
both  in  the  old  and  new  worlds,  had  been  indulged 
in  quite  extensively.  The  best  physicians  of  the  old 
school  had  been  consulted  for  what  was  thought,  by 
them  and  by  the  patient  herself,  and  her  friends,  to  be 
a  case  of  common  biliousness,  which  cases  are  in  the 
present  day  as  common  as  sunshine,  if  we  are  gov- 
erned by  popular  diagnoses.  Simple  remedies  for  the 
simple  indisposition  were  prescribed,  but  all  to  no 
effect,  the  same  general  condition  remaining,  exhibit- 
ing itself  in  general  languor  and  depression.  The  same 
dyspeptic  troubles  remained,  and  what  were  thought 
to  be  minor  troubles,  calling  for  no  very  critical  ex- 
amination or  thorough  search  for  conditions  or  causes, 
the  prescriber  being  satisfied  with  the  effects  apparent 
of  an  unseen  and  unsought -for  cause,  which,  alas, 
proved  delusive,  gave  his  remedies  with  the  hope,  but 
not  the  assurance,  that  good  would  result  from  their 
administration.  The  patient  was,  therefore,  as  I  now 


92  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

believe,  soothed  along  to  a  certain  doom  unwarned, 
therefore  unarmed.  The  secret  enemy  was  coiled 
away,  unseen  by  mortal  eye,  yet  working  slowly,  surely 
and  persistently,  to  the  dissolution  of  the  yielding 
system. 

In  the  meantime  a  happy  marriage  took  place,  and 
though  the  patient  was  not  thought  to  be  a  healthy 
person,  she  was  considered  to  be  as  nearly  so  as  are 
the  majority  of  the  American  ladies.  Conception  soon 
followed,  and  at  the  end  of  the  third  month  a  loss  of 
the  foetus  transpired,  attended  by  only  the  ordinary 
amount  of  trouble,  the  patient  getting  through  with 
as  little  difficulty  as  do  the  majority.  This  abortion 
seemed  to  be  the  match  that  was  to  rouse  the  internal 
fire,  and  ij:  was  almost  immediately  that  the  true  na- 
ture of  the  malady  became  apparent.  Now,  the  whole 
thing  was  marked,  and  there  was  no  mistaking  it.  At- 
tention was  at  once  called  to  the  kidneys,  and  the 
urine,  which  was  tested,  was  found  to  be  highly  albu- 
munious.  The  serious  nature  of  the  malady  immedi- 
ately became  apparent,  its  history  inquired  into,  and 
the  conclusion  arrived  at  was  that  it  was  a  chronic 
case  of  Morbus  Brightii,  rendered  acute  by  the  un- 
happy occurrence  of  the  abortion. 

The  magnitude  of  the  obstacles  to  be  overcome 
were  duly  appreciated,  and  a  most  diligent  and  careful 
study  of  the  case,  its  symptoms,  and  indicated  reme- 
dies was  entered  into,  and  persevered  in.  The  reme- 
dies were  selected  with  as  much  care  as  it  was  possi- 
ble for  me  to  observe,  and  they  were  administered 
faithfully  until  they  were  found  to  be  of  no  avail, 
when  something  else  was  substituted.  It  is  a  custom 
with  me  to  act  in  all  cases  as  I  did  in  this  :  as  soon  as 
I  become  satisfied  that  any  one  remedy  is  useless,  to- 


PACIFIC    HOMEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  93 

change,  being  governed  in  each  change  by  the  charac- 
teristics presented,  which,  in  the  present  case,  changed 
from  time  to  time,  so  that  during  the  whole  time  quite 
a  number  of  remedies  were  administered,  with,  how- 
ever, nothing  but  temporary  relief  being  afforded,  the 
case  constantly  progressing  from  bad  to  worse. 

To    enumerate   the    remedies   and    the    treatment 
throughout  would  be  merely  the  repetition  of  a  use- 
less war  against  a  foe  that  had  by  stealth  obtained  full 
possession  of  the  citadel,  and  had  completely  under- 
mined the  whole  structure.     The  consequence  was, 
that  about  nine  weeks  subsequent  to  the  abortion  the 
patient  died ;   not,  however,  until  she  had  passed  into 
the   hands  of  one  of  the  "  regulars,"  whose   conceit, 
ignorance,  or  wickedness,  led  him  to  promise  a  cure, 
which  promise  he  made  directly  in  face  of  an  opinion 
given   by  myself  that  she  could  not  recover,  which 
opinion  was  indorsed  by  a  learned  member  of  this 
Society,  whose  assistance  I  had  availed  myself  of  in 
the  emergency.     The  cure  he  attempted  to  accom- 
plish by  the  administration  of  large  doses  of  Muriatic 
Tincture  of  Iron.       This,  of  course,  was  prescribed 
pathologically,  therefore    scientifically.     The  patient 
made    rapid  progress — toward    the  grave — with  our 
learned  friend;  for  in  just  two  weeks  from  the  time  he 
undertook  to  cure  her  she  died.     Of  course,  in  the 
eyes  of  the  worthy  M.  D.  it  was  all  right.     With   a 
sigh  of  inward  satisfaction  our  ^sculapian,  no  doubt, 
thought  he  had  done  his  duty,  though  he  sacrificed 
truthfulness  and  principle  in   so  doing,  and  rescued 
one  more  hapless  victim  from  the  hands  of  the  quacks, 
who,  he  states,  let  their  patients  die   without  doing 
anything,  instead  of  nobly  standing  up  to  duty  and 
privilege,    and    scientifically  torturing    the    doomed 


94  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

patient.  She  was  so  rescued,  and  now  sleeps  the 
quiet  slumber  of  death,  having,  for  two  weeks  at  least, 
followed  the  good  old  course,  and  did  penance  by 
swallowing  the  delectable  compounds  prepared  by  the 
wise  man  of  the  blister  and  purge  persuasion. 

The  fatal  termination  of  this  case,  which  I  feel  con- 
fident resulted  from  its  non-recognition  in  its  earlier 
stages,  caused  me  to  be  on  the  alert,  and  I  was  more 
particular  by  far  than  before  in  the  search  for  any 
symptoms  that  would  lead  to  the  suspecting  of  the 
dread  complaint ;  nor  was  my  vigilance  unrewarded, 
for  in  a  short  time  subsequent  to  the  fatal  issue  of  the 
case  just  cited,  another  patient  applied  to  me  with  the 
usual  story,  that  "  he  was  bilious,"  and  that  for  some 
time  he  had  been  under  the  care  of  different  physi- 
cians, but  as  yet  had  received  no  benefit.  He  claimed 
to  be  growing  gradually  worse,  weaker  and  more  pros- 
trate, and  that  his  stomach  was  growing  much  weaker, 
and  inconveniencing  him  very  much.  A  new  symp- 
tom, too,  had  of  late  forced  itself  upon  his  attention, 
that  of  the  swelling  of  his  limbs.  No  pain  was  com- 
plained of  in  any  portion  of  his  body,  and  it  was  only 
upon  deep  and  firm  pressure  in  the  renal  region  that 
any  sensitiveness  could  be  discovered.  Examination 
of  the  urine  was  made  by  heat,  nitric  acid,  and  by  the 
use  of  the  microscope,  the  result  of  which  was  to  dis- 
cover in  it  large  quantities  of  albumen.  I  explained 
to  the  patient  his  condition,  and  prescribed  for  him  a 
non-stimulating  diet,  and  a  total  abstinence  from  drinks 
of  a  spiritous  nature.  I  made  careful  investigation  of 
all  his  symptoms,  and  the  nearest  similimum  that  I 
could  discover  was  Arsenicum,  which  was  given  to 
him  in  the  3oth  attenuation.  In  about  one  week 
another  examination  was  made  of  the  urine,  and  a 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  9$. 

marked  improvement  was  found,  there  being  less  than 
one  third  of  the  original  amount  detected ;  and,  fur- 
ther, there  was  a  decided  amelioration  of  all  his  other 
ailments.  The  same  prescription  was  repeated,  and 
with  such  favorable  results  that,  in  three  weeks  from 
the  time  I  first  saw  him,  he  was  dismissed  a  well  man. 
The  next  case  was  that  of  a  lady,  thirty-five  years 
of  age,  fair  complexion,  and  very  stoutly  built.  She 
had  for  years  been  troubled  with  a  heavy,  dull  feeling 
in  the  lumbar  region,  but,  as  she  was  a  very  hard- 
working woman,  these  pains  were  attributed  to  over- 
exertion.  For  a  few  years  past  she  had  had  numerr- 
ous  "  bilious  attacks,"  so-called,  and  was  treated  in 
compliance  with  the  diagnosis.  I  was  called  to  see 
her  for  an  attack  which  was  said  to  be  as  all  the  rest, 
only  worse.  My  suspicions  were  aroused  in  conse- 
quence of  the  lumbar  pains,  and  I  tested  the  urine,, 
finding  it,  as  I  feared,  albuminous.  With  that  as  the 
key-note,  all  the  rest  became  at  once  explicable.  To 
find  the  similimum  in  this  case  was  to  me  a  much 
more  difficult  task  than  in  either  of  the  cases  before 
mentioned,  characteristics  of  a  number  of  remedies 
being  presented,  and  it  was  considerable  time  before, 
to  my  own  satisfaction,  I  found  the  remedy  suited  to 
the  case.  The  first  one  I  decided  upon  was  Cantha- 
ris,  which  for  a  time  seemed  to  occasion  some  improve- 
ment, and  to  entirely  change  the  aspect  of  the  case,, 
a  new  set  of  symptoms  coming  prominently  forward. 
One  result  of  it  was,  that  in  one  week  from  the  time 
I  took  the  case,  the  lady  became,  from  what  was 
thought  to  be  a  very  fleshy  woman,  to  be  a  medium- 
sized  person.  The  case  then  presented  a  new  set  of 
symptoms,  the  urine,  however,  remaining  the  same. 
Arsenicum  was  next  given,  and  with  good  results  for  a. 


96  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

few  days,  when  another  change  transpired,  which,  to 
my  mind,  called  for  Lycop.,  which  did  good  work,  so 
that  at  the  end  of  three  weeks  the  patient  left  her  bed. 
Unfortunately,  only  three  days  elapsed  when,  in  con- 
sequence of  an  indiscreet  exposure  to  cold,  a  relapse 
occurred,  which  threatened  to  destroy  life.  For  a 
number  of  days  there  seemed  to  be  no  chance  what- 
ever for  the  patient,  in  my  judgment ;  she,  however, 
rallied.  Under  Arsenicum  and  Cantharis,  given  at 
such  times  and  for  such  periods  as  seemed  called  for. 
my  patient  rapidly  improved,  so  that  at  the  end  of 
three  months  she  was  restored  to  as  good  a  state  of 
"health  as  she  had  enjoyed  for  years.  The  urine  has 
l>ecome  normal  in  quantity  and  quality.  The  lumbar 
pains  have  ceased  ;  the  bloated  condition  has  passed 
away  ;  the  appetite  has  been  corrected,  so  that  she 
-eats,  relishes  and  retains  in  her  stomach  all  ordinary 
food,  in  fact,  all  those  untoward  symptoms  that  have 
for  years  been  the  bane  of  her  existence,  and  which 
Tiave  been  treated  as  evidences  of  bile,  have  disap- 
peared, and  to-day  she  claims  to  be  a  well  woman. 

How  long  this  favorable  condition  of  affairs  will 
continue  I  believe  will  depend  upon  the  patient  her- 
self, any  inattention  on  her  part  rendering  a  return  of 
the  trouble  probable;  but,  knowing  the  serious  char- 
acter of  such  relapse,  more  than  ordinary  care  will  be 
observed,  and  a  number  of  years  may  yet  be  added  to 
the  lady's  life. 

This  I  believe  to  be  a  case  that  had  continued  for 
some  time,  and  was  fast  nearing  that  chronic  stage 
beyond  which  very  rarely  recovery  occurs.  I  do  not 
claim  any  penetration  more  than  usual,  but  this  patient 
had,  at  different  periods,  prior  to  the  present  attack, 
been  ill  with  symptoms,  as  far  as  I  could  learn,  iden- 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.  97 

tical  with  the  ones  in  this  attack,  differing  only  in  de- 
gree and  severity.  She  got  up  from  them  with,  how- 
ever, the  lumbar  pains  remaining,  and  no  recognition 
of  the  true  nature  of  the  malady  being  found,  though 
she  had  learned  and  scientific  physicians  attending 
her. 

The  two  points  I  wish  to  establish  in  this  ram- 
bling paper  are,  the  probable  curability  of  these  cases, 
treated  homceopathically,  and  the  necessity  of  a  more 
careful  scrutiny  of  those  bilious  cases  with  which  we 
come  in  contact  daily. 


VEGETABLE  FOOD  FOR  MAN. 


BY    G.    M.    PEASE,    M.    D.,    SAN    FRANCISCO. 

The  various  animal  tribes,  in  relation  to  the  food 
on  which  they  subsist,  are  classified  by  naturalists  as 
herbivorous,  carnivorous,  and  omnivorous ;  or  those 
which  subsist  upon  vegetables,  upon  flesh,  and  those 
which  eat  both  vegetables  and  flesh. 

There  are  two  varieties  of  vegetable-eaters  ;  those 
which  live  upon  fruits  alone,  and  those  which  eat 
grass  and  grains.  The  first  feed  upon  pulpy  fruits, 
esculent  roots,  nuts  and  seeds,  while  the  others  derive 
a  great  part  of  their  nourishment  from  grasses,  leaves 
and  twigs  of  vegetables.  In  examining  the  teeth  and 
jaws  of  different  animals,  we  find  them  well  adapted 
to  the  style  of  food  it  was  intended  for  them  to  live 
upon.  The  teeth  of  the  fruit-eaters  are  different  from 
those  of  the  flesh-eaters.  The  chisel-shaped  lip-teeth 
are  well  fitted  for  dividing  into  convenient  morsels  the 
materials  naturally  fed  upon.  The  jaws  of  the  vege- 
table-eaters are  capable  of  lateral  motion,  whereas 
those  of  the  flesh-eaters  are  not.  The  omnivorous 
quadrupeds,  as  the  bear,  hog,  and  opossum,  have 
cheek  -  teeth  with  tuberculated  or  cusped  surfaces, 
which  meet  each  other  when  the  mouth  is  closed; 
but  the  lip-teeth  and  the  pre-molars  are  of  a  different 
type  from  those  of  the  fruit-eaters,  and,  like  those  of 
the  flesh-eaters,  are  destitute  of  the  lateral  motion  of 


IOO  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

the  lower  jaw.  Man  has  no  impediment  from  project- 
ing canines  to  a  free  lateral,  or  an  antero-posterior 
motion  of  the  lower  jaw,  and  when  we  consider  the 
number  and  arrangement  of  the  teeth  it  ought  fairly 
to  place  man  at  the  head  of  the  fruit-eaters. 

When  the  naturalists  style  man  as  an  omnivorous 
animal  it  is  probable  that  they  take  him  as  they  find 
him — omnivorous  self-made,  and  not  as  he  was  prim- 
itively made.  If  marked  by  Nature  as  a  vegetable- 
eater,  it  is  natural  to  conclude  that  those  articles  of 
food  indicated  by  his  organism  must,  on  the  whole,  be 
best  for  his  health.  Mons.  Du  Chaillu  says  that  in  a 
large  number  of  stomachs  of  the  gorilla,  which  he  has 
opened,  he  discovered  nothing  but  vegetable  materials. 

Almost  any  of  the  quadrumana  can  be  taught  to 
eat  flesh,  and,  if  pressed  by  hunger,  it  is  natural  to 
suppose  they  might  even  seize  upon  some  kind  of 
flesh  for  food.  The  cow  and  the  horse  have  been 
known  to  eat  fish.  A  dog  kept  upon  vegetable  food 
will  lose  flesh  and  become  feeble.  An  orang-outang 
fed  upon  mixed  food  soon  sickens  and  dies.  The 
whole  alimentary  apparatus  in  man  and  the  orang  is 
strikingly  alike ;  the  stomach  and  intestines  are  like 
in  form,  each  with  a  saculated  colon  and  a  vermiform 
appendage  to  the  ccecum.  If  in  one  animal  this  organ- 
ization is  indicative  of  certain  kinds  of  food  as  best 
suited  to  health,  is  it  not  reasonable  to  suppose  that 
the  same  will  hold  true  in  the  other?  If  a  mixed  diet 
induces,  disease  in  the  quadrumana,  should  we  look 
for  the  same  in  man  ?  Are  not  the  orangs  and  goril- 
las of  use  to  us  as  living  attestations  of  the  truth  and 
value  of  the  dietetic  lesson  given  us  in  Paradise,  to 
demonstrate  to  us  that  an  animal  with  a  like  organ- 
ization with  ourselves  may  subsist  exclusively  upon 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         IOI 

such  eatables  as  were  given  us  in  Eden,  and  yet  be 
healthy  and  strong  ? 

In  the  mechanism  of  the  alimentary  canal  there  is 
a  relation  to  the  kind  of  food  adapted  to  the  different 
tribes.  In  those  of  the  herbaceous  or  grass-eating 
kind  the  canal  is  long  and  capacious,  and  possesses 
many  contrivances  for  detaining  the  food ;  and  as  a 
great  deal  of  it  is  not  nutritious,  the  end,  or  what  we 
call  the  large  intestine,  is  capacious,  and  acts  as  a  sort 
of  reservoir  until  the  nutrition  is  extracted.  In  the 
carnivorous  animals  it  is  much  more  simple  and 
shorter,  and  is  adapted  for  the  food  which  being 
mostly  nutritious  requires  but  a  small  reservoir  for  its 
reception.  The  alimentary  canal  of  fruit-eating  ani- 
mals is  intermediate  between  the  two;  it  is  shorter 
than  the  former,  and  longer  than  the  latter. 

No  flesh-eating  animal  has  the  large  intestine  so 
much  developed  as  the  fruit-eaters.  We  find  an  ali- 
mentary canal  similar  to  man's  only  in  the  apes  and 
monkeys.  Cuvier  says  that  "  apes  are  the  only  quad- 
rumana  in  which  the  hyoid  bone,  the  liver,  and  the 
ccecum  exactly  resemble  those  parts  in  man."  Again 
he  says:  "  Fruits,  roots,  and  the  esculent  parts  of  veg- 
etables appear  to  be  the  natural  food  for  man;  his 
hands  afford  him  a  facility  in  gathering  them,  and  his 
short  and  comparatively  weak  jaws,  his  canine  teeth> 
not  projecting  beyond  the  common  level  of  the  others, 
would  not  permit  him  either  to  feed  upon  herbage  or 
to  devour  flesh,  unless  these  aliments  were  previously 
prepared  by  the  culinary  process." 

"  The  form  of  the  stomach  and  ccecum  and  the 
structure  of  the  whole  canal,"  says  Mr.  Lawrence, 
"  are  very  much  alike  in  man  and  the  monkey  kind. 
The  orangs  have  the  appendix  vermiformis,  which  the 


IO2  TRANSACTION'S    OF   THE 

others  want.  Man  possesses  a  tolerably  large  ccecum 
and  cellular  colon,  which,  I  believe,  are  not  found  in 
any  carnivorous  animal."  "  Thus,  we  find  that,  whether 
we  consider  the  teeth  and  jaws,  or  the  immediate 
instruments  of  digestion,  the  human  structure  closely 
resembles  that  of  the  simiae,  all  of  which  in  their  nat- 
ural state  are  completely  herbivorous." 

When  man  was  placed  in  Paradise  he  was  told  that 
he  might  eat ;  but  lest  he  should  not  know  what  was 
the  best  fitted  for  him,  his  food  was  designated  as  fol- 
lows :  "  And  God  said,  '  Behold  I  have  given  you 
every  herb  bearing  seed  which  is  upon  the  face  of  all 
the  earth  ;  and  every  tree  in  which  is  the  fruit  of  a 
tree  yielding  seed,  to  you  it  shall  be  for  meat.' " 

Not  one  ward  was  said  about  flesh,  and  it  was  not 
until  many  years  afterward  that  flesh  was  eaten.  We 
are  told  in  the  Bible  that  "  man  sought  out  many 
inventions."  Now,  it  is  possible  that  some  of  these 
inventions  were  evil,  and  might  not  that  of  eating 
meat  have  been  one  of  them  ?  If  it  had  been  best 
ior  man  to  eat  flesh,  why  would  it  not  have  been 
given  him  while  he  was  in  Paradise — while  he  was 
pure  and  free  from  sin  ?  But  it  was  not  allowed  him 
until  after  the  flood,  and  then  in  these  words :  "  Every 
moving  thing  that  liveth  shall  be  meat  for  you;  even 
as  the  green  herb  have  I  given  you  all  things.  But 
flesh  with  the  life  thereof,  which  is  the  blood  thereof, 
shall  ye  not  eat."  Why  was  this  permission  given 
now,  and  not  in  Paradise  ?  We  read  that  God  did 
many  things  because  of  the  "  hardness  of  their  hearts." 
He  said,  "  You  want  meat,  you  can  have  it ;  but  you 
may  find,  sooner  or  later,  that  my  way  is  the  right 
way." 

Sir  Everard  Home  says:  "  In  the  history  of  man  in 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         1 03 

the  Bible  we  are  told  that  dominion  over  the  animal 
world  was  bestowed  upon  him  at  the  creation ;  but 
the  Divine  permission  to  indulge  in  animal  food  was 
not  given  till  after  the  flood.  ******* 
While  mankind  remained  in  a  state  of  innocence  there 
is  every  ground  to  believe  that  their  only  food  was 
the  produce  of  the  vegetable  kingdom."  Mr.  Dick, 
in  his  "  Philosophy  of  Religion,"  says  he  "  thinks  that 
to  take  away  the  life  of  any  sensitive  being,  and  to 
feed  upon  its  flesh,  appears  incompatible  with  a  state 
of  innocence,  and  therefore  no  such  grant  was  given 
Adam  in  Paradise,  nor  to  the  antediluvians.  It  appears 
to  have  been  a  grant  suited  only  to  the  degraded  state 
of  man  after  the  deluge." 

He  also  would  lead  us  to  infer  that  he  thought  that 
as  men  progress  toward  moral  perfection  we  shall  again 
return  to  the  productions  of  the  vegetable  kingdom  for 
our  food.  According  to  Plato,  men  abstained  from 
mating  meat  for  many  years,  because  they  had  the 
idea  that  they  should  pollute  their  holy  altars  if  they 
spilled  the  blood  of  beasts.  Plato  also  says:  "Swine 
were  used  for  food  first  of  all  animals,  being  wholly 
unserviceable  for  other  purposes,  and  having,  in  the 
language  of  Cicero,  animam  pro  sale  ne  putrescent — 
lives  only,  instead  of  salt,  to  keep  them  from  putre- 
fying." 

There  is  scarcely  any  species  of  animals  that  has 
not  been  used  for  food  by  man.  The  Chinese  delight 
in  rats,  the  Africans  eat  ants,  and  Humboldt  tells  us 
that  he  has  seen  little  children  in  South  America  draw 
from  their  holes  those  venomous  reptiles,  the  centi- 
pedes, and  crunch  them  alive  with  apparently  great 
relish.  "  Lalande,  a  famous  French  astronomer,  ate 
the  spider  as  a  delicious  morsel."  And  it  is  related 


IO4  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

that  the  Western  rangers  used  to  regard  rattlesnake 
soup  as  a  luxury. 

Not  only  do  men  eat  everything,  but  they  eat  too- 
much,  and  by  causing  the  stomach  so  much  extra  labor 
they  lay  themselves  liable  to  diseases  of  various  organs. 
Old  Dr.  Mussey  once  said  of  one  of  his  lady  patients,, 
who  was  very  corpulent  and  a  large  eater,  that  she 
complained  of  some  debilitating  lesion,  and  told  him 
"  she  had  reason  to  be  thankful  that  she  had  a  good 
appetite  and  could  digest  her  food;  were  it  not  for  her 
appetite,  she  would  have  been  dead  long  ago."  Ris- 
ton,  in  his  work  on  "Animal  Food,"  says,  "  the  Bed- 
ouins are  a  most  alert  and  military  race,  and  yet  it  is 
an  undoubted  fact  that  the  quantity  of  food  usually 
consumed  by  the  greatest  part  of  them  does  not  exceed 
six  ounces  a  day.  Six  or  seven  dates  soaked  in  melted 
butter  serve  a  man  a  whole  day,  and  he  esteems  him- 
self happy  when  he  can  add  a  small  quantity  of  coarse 
flour  or  a  little  ball  of  rice."  We  have  a  record  in  the 
Bible  of  the  children  of  Israel  subsisting  for  forty 
years  upon  manna,  which  was  not  at  all  of  the  flesh  char- 
acter, and  yet  they  were  well  and  strong.  They  once 
grumbled  because  they  had  no  flesh,  and  God  allowed 
them  quails ;  but  the  result  was  far  from  pleasing  to 
them,  as  the  quails  bred  a  pestilence  among  them, 
and  they  were  glad  to  call  out  for  their  manna  once 
more. 

Dr.  H.  H.  Brown  says  that  animal  food  is  not  so- 
good  for  laborers  as  vegetable  food,  and  that  those 
who  say  it  is  are  those  who  never  have  tried  it.  He 
would  as  soon  think  a  man  would  deny  that  there  was 
such  a  city  as  London,  because  he  had  never  been 
across  the  water  and  seen  it. 

There  are  many  who  say  that  vegetable  food  may 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         10$ 

do  well  enough  for  professional  men,  but  not  for  the 
farmer.  We  have,  however,  the  abundant  testimony 
of  farmers  that  they  can  do  more  work,  with  less 
fatigue,  upon  a  strictly  vegetable  diet.  A  noted  farmer 
in  New  York  says  :  "  Now,  digestion  is  carried  on 
with  perfect  ease.  My  appetite  is  always  keen.  I  am 
very  seldom  troubled  with  the  slightest  cold,  and  I 
have  not  experienced  a  sick  day  since  I  abandoned 
the  use  of  animal  food." 

Laborers  in  the  mines,  in  Chile,  live  entirely  upon 
the  haricot  bean,  and  yet  they  are  remarkably  strong 
and  healthy.  The  porters  in  Syria  are  among  the 
strongest  people  in  the  world ;  their  usual  load,  which 
they  carry  upon  their  shoulders,  being  a  box  of  sugar, 
the  weight  of  which  is  from  nine  hundred  to  a  thous- 
and pounds.  This  load  they  carry  with  perfect  ease, 
and  yet  these  men  subsist  most  entirely  upon  figs  and 
other  fruits.  A  common  expression  of  the  natives  of 
the  South  Sea  islands,  used  to  be  :  "  How  stupid  you 
are  ;  perhaps  you  are  an  Englishman."  They  seemed 
to  think  that  the  habit  of  eating  beef  and  pork  ren- 
ders one  stupid,  and  they  laugh  at  the  awkwardness 
of  Englishmen  in  climbing,  swimming,  etc. 

It  is  stated  as  a  fact  that  one  not  only  loses  his 
taste  for  flesh,  after  an  abstinence  for  some  time,  but 
cannot  bear  even  the  smell  of  it.  Dr.  Cullen,  in  one 
of  his  works,  in  speaking  of  gout,  says :  "  I  am  firmly 
persuaded  that  any  man,  who,  early  in  life,  will  enter 
upon  the  constant  practice  of  bodily  labor  and  of  absti- 
nence from  animal  food,  will  be  preserved  entirely 
from  the  disease."  He  further  says  :  "  If  an  absti- 
nence from  animal  food  be  entered  upon  early  in  life, 
while  the  vigor  of  the  system  is  yet  entire,  I  have  no- 
doubt  of  its  being  both  safe  and  effectual." 


IO6  TRANSACTIONS. 

Tissot,  in  his"  Advice  to  People  upon  their  Health," 
in  speaking  of  diarrhoea,  and  particularly  of  epidemic 
dysentery,  says :  "  Ripe  fruits  of  all  kinds,  especially 
in  the  Summer,  are  the  true  preservatives  against  this 
malady."  He  says  he  has  followed  this  course  when- 
ever this  disease  prevails. 

Not  only  is  vegetable  food  sufficient  for  laboring 
men,  but  it  is  also  equally  fit  for  students.  In  our 
accounts  of  Caspar  Hauser  we  find  that  his  mind  was 
very  remarkably  clear  and  perceptive ;  and  yet  he  ate 
no  animal  food,  but  subsisted  entirely,  for  the  first 
seventeen  years  of  his  life,  upon  bread  and  water.  It 
was  with  difficulty  that  he  was  taught  to  eat  mixed 
food,  and  in  Prof.  Daumer's  notes  upon  him  he  says : 
"After  he  had  learned  regularly  to  eat  meat,  his  men- 
tal activity  was  diminished,  his  eyes  lost  their  bril- 
liancy and  expression,  his  vivid  propensity  to  constant 
activity  was  diminished,  the  intense  application  of  his 
mind  gave  way  to  absence  and  indifference,  and  the 
quickness  of  his  apprehension  was  also  considerably 
diminished." 

In  my  medical  experience,  I  have  met  with  a  few 
persons  who  lived  exclusively  upon  vegetable  food, 
and  I  have  found  them  quick  at  perception,  and,  when 
suffering  from  any  ailment,  their  recuperative  powers 
were  great,  and  they  yielded  to  medicine  with  the 
greatest  readiness. 


NOTES    ON    HEMORRHAGE  DURING 
PREGNANCY. 


BY   A.    LILIENCRANTZ,    M.    D.,    OAKLAND,    CAL. 


GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC  HOMCEOPATHIC  MEDICAL 
SOCIETY  : — Gestation  is  liable  at  any  time  to  be  com- 
plicated with  loss  of  blood.  If  such  a  loss  should  take 
place  during  the  first  thirty  days,  it  is  very  apt  to  be 
looked  upon  as  merely  a  more  than  commonly  abund- 
ant menstrual  discharge,  and  we  have  no  ready  means 
of  knowing  whether  the  woman  was  really  pregnant 
or  not.  The  microscope  might  inform  us,  but  the 
discharges  are  seldom  saved,  and  even  if  they  were, 
and  a  strict  examination  made,  its  practical  value 
would  be  of  but  small  importance. 

But  when  a  woman  is  more  than  thirty  days  ad- 
vanced, the  appearance  of  blood  in  the  generative 
intestine  is  to  be  looked  upon  as  an  affair  worthy  of 
our  closest  attention.  It  almost  always  appears  in  one 
of  two  ways:  First,  after  a  few  premonitory  symp- 
toms, such  as  pain,  bearing-down  sensation,  the  appear- 
ance of  a  shred,  etc.,  lasting  from  twenty-four  to  forty- 
eight  hours,  a  more  or  less  sudden  and  profuse  hem- 
orrhage sets  in  with  active  pain  and  efforts  of  expul- 
sion; or  secondly,  a  slight  and  more  passive  hemor- 
rhage comes  on  without  any  active  symptoms  being 
present,  and  which,  after  a  time,  if  not  checked,  be- 
comes mixed  with  shreds  or  pieces  of  degenerate 


IO8  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

membranes  and  a  more  or  less  fetid  discharge,  the 
result  or  product  of  decomposition. 

In  the  first  case  it  is  generally  pretty  easy  to  tell 
both  what  we  have  to  deal  with  and  what  to  do.  In 
such  cases  it  is  a  waste  of  time  to  attempt  to  save  the 
embryo.  Our  plain  duty  is  how  to  rid  the  uterus  as 
quickly  as  possible  of  its  contents.  When  the  os  is 
open  and  soft,  and  the  uterus  low  in  the  pelvis — as  it 
usually  is  under  such  circumstances — this  is  a  very 
easy  thing  to  do.  But  this  is  not  always  the  case ; 
we  often  will  find  the  embryo  to  have  escaped,  but 
the  os  not  sufficiently  dilated  to  allow  the  soft  placen- 
tal  structure  to  pass  away.  Now,  according  to  my 
experience,  the  most  profuse  and  dangerous  hemor- 
rhage sets  in  at  the  time  these  structures  are  partially 
out  of  the  uterus,  but  still  held  firmly  by  the  unyield- 
ing os,  and  the  same  holds  true  whether  it  is  an  ordi- 
nary embryotic  placenta  or  an  arm  degenerated  into 
a  fleshy  mole.  In  such  cases  I  have  many  times  suc- 
ceeded in  removing  them  by  first  firmly  holding  the 
uterus  with  my  left  hand,  and  then  with  my  right  index 
finger  press  upon  the  posterior  lip  of  the  os,  from 
behind  forward;  at  other  times,  by  insinuating  the 
finger  between  the  parts  concerned,  it  will  be  easily 
removed.  In  some  cases  the  long,  slender  placental 
forceps  will  fulfill  their  office  admirably.  But  in  other 
cases — and  there,  fortunately,  the  flowing  is  as  a  rule 
not  very  profuse  —  true  contents,  or  parts  of  them 
remain  in  the  uterine  cavity  proper — the  os  but 
slightly  dilated,  and  the  uterus  high  in  the  pelvis. 
Here  the  same  simple  means  will  not  suffice  to  dis- 
lodge and  remove  them.  Very  ingenious  instruments 
in  the  shape  of  forceps,  hooks,  scoops,  etc.,  have  been 
invented  and  recommended  by  skillful  and  experienced 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY1.          109 

physicians,  to  aid  us  to  remove  these  obstacles  in  our 
way.  I  have  tried  various  means  of  this  kind,  but  my 
full  conviction  is,  that  in  very  many  cases  of  this  kind 
a  little  time  and  patience  will  do  more  for  the  woman 
than  any  of  the  most  ingeniously  invented  instruments 
we  now  have  or  are  ever  likely  to  possess.  Let  me 
illustrate  by  a  case  that  came  under  my  care  a  few 
years  ago.  I  was  called  in  great  haste  to  see  Mrs.  K., 
.who  was  said  to  be  flowing  to  death.  When  I  arrived, 
I  found  it  to  be  a  case  of  abortion  at  about  three  and 
one  half  months,  the  woman  having  procured  it 
upon  herself  by  introducing  a  whalebone  into  the 
uterus  seven  successive  times.  The  excessive  flowing 
had  already  stopped  with  the  expulsion  of  the  fcetus. 
The  secundries  had  not  passed,  and  I  consequntly 
proceeded  to  remove  them.  I  used  every  means  at 
my  command  to  do  so,  but  in  vain.  The  finger  so 
nearly  fitted  the  os  that  nothing  could  be  removed  by 
the  side  of  it.  The  narrow  forceps  would  tear  through 
the  soft  structures,  and  the  larger-sized  pair  could  not 
be  used  for  want  of  space  to  manipulate  them.  I  also 
tried  a  kind  of  scoop-shaped  instrument,  but  in  vain. 
Being  compelled  to  desist,  I  concluded  to  wait  with 
as  good  grace  as  I  could  command.  The  flowing 
having  stopped,  I  gave  the  woman  some  Arnica  3d, 
and  left.  The  next  twenty-four  hours  passed  without 
change.  On  the  second  night  pain  commenced  again, 
accompanied  with  slight  hemorrhage.  This  continued 
from  six  to  eight  hours,  when  the  placenta  was  expel- 
led without  aid.  But  I  noticed  the  mass,  such  as  I 
now  found  it,  was  very  different  in  size  and  consist- 
ency from  what  I  had  felt  in  the  uterus  the  night 
before.  The  repeated  although  slight  uterine  con- 
tractions had  forced  almost  all  the  blood  out  of  it — 


I  IO  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

had  changed  the  soft,  shapeless  mass  into  a  fairly  solid, 
well-defined  mold  of  the  uterine  cavity,  capable  of  suf- 
ficient resistance  to  wedge  its  way  out  of  the  now 
much  more  dilated  os.  The  woman  recovered  rapid- 
ly, and  the  case  clearly  proved  one  thing  to  me,  at 
least :  that  my  services  were  not  so  indispensable  and 
valuable  as  I  had  previously  imagined.  Since  that 
case  occurred  I  have  many  times  verified  the  fact  that 
a  little  time  is  the  most  powerful  assistant  a  doctor 
can  have. 

Then  there  is  another  class  of  this  kind  of  patient 
that  puts  a  doctor's  good  nature  to  a  test.  Sometimes 
you  find  a  woman  in  the  first  months  of  pregnancy 
having  a  slow  peritonitis  for  weeks,  accompanied  with 
occasional  pains,  but  entire  absence  of  any  active 
symptoms.  Little  shreds  and  decomposed  matter,  or 
the  rupture  of  the  membranes  giving  vent  to  the  am- 
niotic  fluid,  only  go  to  show  that  you  have  no  hope  to 
save  the  embryo,  and  still  everything  you  do  to  empty 
the  uterus  seems  to  be  utterly  in  vain.  Introduce 
sponge-tents,  apply  electricity,  administer  caulophyl- 
lin,  ergot,  quinine,  etc.,  high  or  low,  or  you  may  shower 
the  cervix  uteri  with  water,  or  introduce  the  sound  into 
the  uterine  cavity,  and  allow  it  to  remain  for  hours,  and 
still  the  womb  will  act  just  like  a  stubborn  mule  or 
balky  horse ;  it  will  not  contract  until  in  its  own  time 
it  gets  ready.  You  must  wait.  Time  is  the  only  effect- 
ive remedy,  and  commonly  a  very  safe  one. 

The  hemorrhage  catised  by  that  degeneration  of 
the  ovum  called  Hydatids  is  generally  apt  to  be  mis- 
taken for  that  of  an  ordinary  abortion.  Its  frequent 
recurrence  in  spite  of  any  care,  its  sudden  appearance 
and  disappearance,  together  with  the  rapid  and  unpro- 
portioned  increase  of  the  uterus,  will  soon  tell  what  we 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         Ill 

have  to  deal'with.  In  these  cases  Nature  alone  relieves 
the  sufferer  by  expelling  the  mass  about  the  third  or 
fourth  month.  If  not,  the  introduction  of  an  elastic 
catheter,  and  allowing  it  to  remain  for  an  hour  or  two, 
generally  suffices  to  bring  on  pain  and  expulsion. 
Here  the  uterus  is  larger  and  more  readily  manipu- 
lated. Nevertheless,  even  in  such  cases,  we  cannot 
have  our  own  way.  Last  Summer  I  treated  a  case  of 
Hydatids  of  the  womb  where  the  mass  was  sufficient- 
ly large  to  make  the  woman  appear  at  least  seven 
months  advanced  in  pregnancy.  In  her  case  I  used 
every  medicinal  and  mechanical  means  known  to  me 
and  a  number  of  other  physicians  who  saw  the  case 
with  me,  but  without  any  effect.  Finally,  after  hav- 
ing carried  it  for  about  six  months,  active  contractions 
took  place,  and  the  whole  thing  discharged  without 
particular  assistance  whatever. 

Gentlemen,  these  and  similar  cases  have  strongly 
impressed  on  me  that  "  to  know  when  to  interfere,  and 
when  to  leave  alone,"  is  one  of  the  prime  virtues  of  a 
medical  practitioner. 


HYDROPATHY    IN     ITS     RELATION     TO 
*     HOMCEOPATHY  DURING   TREATMENT 
OF  ACUTE  DISEASES. 


BY  P.  W.  POULSON,  M.  D.,  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

Homeopathic  und  Wasser  in  verein 
Thuts  mere  als  ein  allein. — Dr.  Gunther. 

A  distinguished  Homoeopathist  said  these  words — 
that  Homoeopathy  and  water,  united,  do  more  in  the 
hands  of  a  physician  than  only  one  method. 

At  different  medical  meetings  I  have  called  the 
professional  attention  to  the  great  assistance  a  well- 
directed  Homoeopathic  treatment  will  derive  from 
Hydropathy.  The  Homoeopathic  law  shows  itself 
triumphant  all  through  a  successful  water-treatment, 
and  works  in  unison  with  our  potencies  and  attenu- 
ated remedies,  equally  as  it  does  in  medical  treatment 
of  Homoeopathy.  I  shall  very  briefly  call  the  honored 
body's  attention  to  a  few  modes  of  water  -  treatment 
corresponding  to  Homoeopathy,  and  illustrate  it  with 
a  few  cases. 

Mr.  P.  called  me  to  treat  his  little  daughter.  I 
-found  her  suffering  from  scarlet  fever  and  a  profuse 
diarrhoea.  The  exanthem  had  suddenly  disappeared 
the  day  before,  and  the  breathing  was  very  laborious. 
I  packed  her  myself  in  a  wet  sheet  with  a  dry  one  and 
two  blankets,  and  gave  her  Verat.  Alb.  and  Belladonna 
in  alternation.  In  half  an  hour  she  was  in  a  perspira- 


114  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

tion,  which  kept  up  for  two  hours.  The  diarrhoea 
stopped  as  soon  as  reaction  commenced  ;  and  when 
she,  after  two  hours,  was  taken  out  and  sponged  with 
cold  water,  the  epidermis  presented  a  scarlet  color. 
Her  symptoms  had  nearly  all  disappeared,  and  she 
went  to  sleep  for  the  first  time  in  forty-eight  hours. 
When  I  called  again  I  found  her  out  of  danger,  and 
she  regained  her  strength  in  a  few  days.  Without  the. 
wet  pack,  I  should  have  had  very  little  hope  of  her 
recovery. 

Dr.  Smith,  of  this  city,  called  me  in  consultation  in 
a  case  of  cerebro-spinal  meningitis.  It  was  a  boy  six- 
teen years  old,  with  a  strong,  robust  constitution.  He 
had  been  delirious  for  two  days ;  the  pain  along  the 
spine  and  in  the  cerebellum  had  been  intense.  The 
boy  was  every  few  minutes  started  out  of  the  coma, 
with  a  jerk,  throwing  his  head  and  shoulders  back,, 
and  raving  so  violently  that  his  father,  a  very  strong 
man,  had  difficulty  to  keep  him  quiet.  I  ordered  the 
wet  pack,  and  gave  him  Lachesis  30.  As  soon  as  he- 
was  packed  he  became  quiet,  and  went  to  sleep,  which, 
he  had  not  done  for  several  days.  The  reaction  was 
very  strong,  from  his  powerful  constitution.  He  was- 
kept  in  perspiration  for  nearly  two  hours,  and  then 
taken  out  of  the  pack,  and  sponged  all  over  with  cold 
water ;  soon  after,  he  went  to  sleep,  and  rested  well 
all  night.  Next  morning  he  talked  very  rationally,  and 
recovered  from  day  to  day  without  any  more  difficulty, 
still  continuing  the  Lachesis,  and  Rhus  tox.,  and 
within  a  week  he  was  up  and  around. 

Mr.  S.  called  me  to  attend  his  son,  a  boy  ten  years 
old.  He  had  been  sick  from  measles  already  for  sev- 
eral days.  The  exanthem  had,  from  a  cold,  disap- 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         11$ 

peared  suddenly.  The  reflex  action  had  caused  a 
metastasis  to  the  lungs,  and  I  found  the  parenchyma 
very  much  engorged  and  congested,  and  in  a  pneu- 
monic condition.  A  friend  of  mine,  an  old  Allopathic 
physician,  saw  the  boy,  and  declared  the  case  hopeless ; 
said  he  had  lost  his  son  two  weeks  since  from  a  sim- 
ilar suffering,  and  it  could  not  be  cured.  I  ordered 
the  wet  pack,  and  gave  Sulphur  tinct.,  internally. 
The  boy  was  kept  in  the  wet  sheet  for  two  hours, 
and  perspired  profusely.  After  he  was  taken  out 
and  sponged  in  temperate  water,  the  abdominal  wet 
bandage  was  applied,  and  renewed  night  and  morn- 
ing. The  breathing,  after  the  first  pack,  became  more 
free,  and  the  burning  fever  had  all  disappeared.  I  or- 
dered the  father  to.  give  him  a  new  packing  at  any 
moment  the  violent  fever  should  return.  This  was 
done  once  or  twice  when  the  fever  commenced,  and 
the  Sulphur  continued.  The  boy  recovered  in  a 
week,  and  is  living  now,  in  strong  health. 

Mrs.  B.  called  me  to  treat  her  daughter,  seven  years 
old.  She  had  been  sick  a  couple  of  days.  I  found 
her  suffering  from  typhoid-pneumonia.  She  is  a  very 
delicate  child,  and  I  told  the  mother  that  she  had  a 
very  poor  chance  to  get  through  the  disease,  if  it  ever 
reached  the  second  stage.  She  asked  if  there  was  no 
hope  for  her,  and  I  told  her  there  was,  if  we  resorted 
to  the  wet  pack  in  combination  with  the  medical  treat- 
ment. She  consented,  and  I  packed  the  girl  in  the 
wet  sheet  and  a  dry  sheet,  and  two  blankets,  which  is 
my  usual  method.  Reaction  came  on  very  slowly, 
but  within  an  hour  she  was  in  a  perspiration.  From 
time  to  time  I  gave  her  a  mouthful  of  cold  water  to 
drink — a  plan  which  ought  always  to  be  followed  dur- 


Il6  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ing  every  state  of  perspiration  in  wet  or  dry  pack,  but 
must  be  modified  according  to  the  different  kinds  of 
constitutions,  power  of  reaction,  disease  and  external 
temperature.  After  two  hours'  packing  the  sponge- 
bath  was  given,  and  in  an  hour  afterward  the  abdomi- 
nal bandage  applied,  to  be  renewed  night  and  morn- 
ing. I  left  Belladonna  and  Rhus  tox.,  to  be  given 
in  alternation,  with  directions  to  renew  the  wet  pack 
as  soon  as  typhoid  fever  condition  appeared.  Every 
day,  in  that  state,  she  was  packed,  for  seven  days  in 
succession ;  the  fever  returned  every  day,  much  more 
feeble,  and  also  all  the  above  symptoms  in  proportion. 
After  the  seventh  day  no  trace  of  the  disease  was  ap- 
parent, except  some  prostration,  from  which  she  speed- 
ily recovered ;  the  second  stage  was  avoided,  and  she 
remained  in  good  health. 

Mrs.  H.,  on  Mason  street,  called  me  one  evening  to 
attend  her  eldest  daughter,  suffering  from  scarlet  fever. 
The  exanthem  was  only  slightly  on  the  epidermis ; 
the  fever  intense ;  the  breathing  quick  ;  the  abdominal 
pains  continual,  and  the  fauces  and  tonsils  so  swol- 
len that  deglution  was  accompanied  with  great  diffi- 
culty. The  brain  was  congested,  and  she  had  been 
delirious  for  the  past  twenty-four  hours.  The  child 
was  of  a  scrofulous  diathesis.  I  had  previously  treated 
and  cured  her  of  a  nasal  catarrh,  after  which  she  be- 
came very  fleshy.  Knowing  her  dyscrasic  disposition, 
I  ordered  the  wet  pack ;  she  was  kept  in  it  nearly  two 
hours,  and  most  of  the  time  in  a  perspiration.  Cold 
drinks  of  fresh  water  were  given  her  at  intervals  ;  when 
she  was  taken  out  and  a  sponge-bath  given,  a  deep, 
copper-scarlet  color  covered  the  body.  The  abdominal 
and  wet  neck-bandage  were  applied,  and  Lachesis  30, 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         I  I/ 

and  Phyltolacca  1 5,  given  in  alternation.  For  two  days 
more  in  succession  she  was  packed,  each  time  dur- 
ing the  fever.  From  the  third  day  she  recovered, 
without  any  more  difficulty ;  the  abdominal  bandage 
was  continued  for  nearly  a  week,  and  sweet  oil  occa- 
sionally applied  externally  to  the  badly-swollen  region 
of  the  tonsils,  maxillary  and  parotid  glands.  In  fact, 
the  neck  presented  a  hardened  surface  from  the  par- 
otid to  the  clavicle.  The  oil  relaxed  and  relieved 
greatly  the  internal  strain.  No  other  remedies  were 
given,  except  a  few  doses  of  Ars.  alb.  On  the  twelfth 
day  she  was  out  of  bed.  Two  months  later  a  younger 
daughter  of  Mrs.  H.  had  an  attack  of  cerebro-spinal 
meningitis.  She  suffered  intensely  during  the  night. 
I  found  her  in  the  morning  in  an  unconscious  state, 
her  back  head  pressed  deep  down  in  the  pillow  and 
her  face  and  body  presenting  a  flabby  condition  of 
the  'muscles.  The  eyes,  half- open,  were  dull,  star- 
ing, glassy  and  congested,  pupils  dilated  and  turned 
upward.  The  shoulders  were  lifted  and  the  spine 
pushed  in  a  curve,  and  the  chest  pressed  outward. 
At  short  intervals  screams  were  continued.  I  ordered 
the  wet  pack ;  reaction  took  place  slowly,  and  she  re- 
mained in  the  pack  three  hours.  The  fever  abated 
gradually,  and  for  nearly  two  hours  she  continued  in  a 
mild  perspiration.  Lachesis  30,  and  Atrop.  sulph.  30, 
were  given  internally,  and  a  few  doses  of  Rhus  tox. 
She  slept  quietly  after  the  pack ;  no  fever  was  noticed, 
and  at  times  she  would  utter  a  scream  and  drop  asleep 
again.  After  midnight  the  fever  returned  and  all  the 
former  symptoms  with  renewed  force,  only  less  vio- 
lently. The  mother  resorted  to  the  wet  pack ;  in  a 
few  minutes  she  rested  quietly,  and  in  less  than  half 
an  hour  was  in  a  mild  perspiration.  The  thirst  was 


Il8  TRANSACTIONS. 

relieved  with  frequent  mouthfuls  of  fresh  water.  After 
being  two  hours  in  the  pack  she  was  taken  out  and 
a  sponge-bath  given.  The  sponge,  filled  with  cold 
water,  was  repeatedly  pressed  against  the  neck  and  the 
occiput  and  a  continual  stream  of  cold  water  allowed 
to  run  along  the  spine  until  the  surface  was  quite  cold ; 
the  balance  of  the  night  she  rested  well.  In  the  morn- 
ing she  was  for  the  first  time  conscious,  and  she  im- 
proved from  that  moment  without  further  difficulty. 
The  sponge-baths  were  daily  continued,  and  in  a  week 
more  she  was  playing  with  the  children  in  the  parlor. 
I  could  continue  to  report  numerous  cases  treated 
with  success  under  the  combined  methods  of  Homoe- 
opathy and  Hydropathy.  I  am  sure  it  would  be  a 
gratifying  result  for  both  patient  and  physician  to  ar- 
rest the  progress  of  a  typhoid  fever,  and  prevent  it 
from  entering  the  second  stage,  by  a  method  so  simple 
and  so  certain. 


TYPHOID  FEVER. 


T$Y   J.    A.    ALBERTSON,    M.  D.,    SAN    FRANCISCO. 

Mr.  H.,  a  remarkably  strong  man,  aged  fifty-four 
"years,  weight  two  hundred  and  twenty  pounds,  very 
large  and  apparently  strong  lungs,  had  a  hard  chill, 
.and  three  days  after  I  was  sent  for,  and  found  him 
with  pulse  80,  strong  and  full.     Some  aching  through 
.the  whole  body,  tongue  very  dry,  coated  light-brown, 
^considerable  thirst.     Continued  much  the  same  until 
the  morning  of  the  seventh  day,  when  he  seemed  much 
^better — tongue  not  so  dry,  mind  clearer,  no  pains,  less 
thirst,  and,  altogether,  the  case  looked  as  though  it 
might  break  up ;  but  during  the  day  a  man  got  in  his 
room,  and  talked  business  just  long  enough  to  tire 
him,  consequently  all  the  symptoms  returned  worse 
than  before,  with  some  stupidity  and  nightly  delirium, 
The  pulse  gradually  rose  to  1 20,  urine  passed   freely, 
but  dark-colored,  bowels  slightly  tympanitic,  moving 
every  second  day.     On  the  thirteenth  day  the  fever 
began  to  abate  ;  the  pulse  gradually  went  down  ;  skin 
became  cooler ;  tongue  began  to  clear  out,  and  on  the 
morning  of  the  fourteenth  day  the  patient  was  bright 
•and  cheerful — said  he  felt  like  getting  well,  and  appear- 
ed every  way  much  better  than  at  any  time  since  he 
had  been  sick,  and  I  left  him  in  good  spirits ;  but  in  a 
few  hours  I  was  sent  for  in  great  haste,  and  upon  my 
•arrival,  found  that  a  remarkable  change  had  taken 


I2O  TRANSACTIONS    OF 

place.     Although  the  pulse  had  changed  but  little,, 
yet  the  countenance  had   that  peculiar  look  denot- 
ing danger  (so  quickly  understood,  and  so  hard  to» 
describe),  often  seen  near   the   termination   of  fatal 
cases,  together  with  twitching  of  the  muscles  of  the 
face,  and  drawing  down  of  one  corner  of  the  mouth, 
which  indicated  disturbance  of  the  nerve  -  centers  of 
an  alarming  nature,  and  resulted,  in  a  few  hours,  in 
death  from  paralysis  of  the  lungs  and  heart.     I  have 
given  the  case  much  thought,  but  have  been  unable 
to  arrive  at  any  cause  for  the  sudden  change  from 
apparent  convalescence  to  immediate  death. 

Mrs.  B.,  strong  and  healthy  all  her  life,  had  been 
feeling  a  little  unwell  for  a  few  weeks,  so,  getting 
worse,  called  her  Allopathic  family  physician,  who 
gave  her  a  cathartic.  Still  growing  worse,  I  was  call- 
ed, and  found  the  patient,  apparently,  not  very  sick ; 
pulse  about  100,  tongue  a  little  dry  and  sticky,  some 
diarrhoea,  which  had  been  started  by  the  cathartic. 
Some  days  her  tongue  was  moist  and  coated  white, 
then,  again,  dry  all  over,  and  then  moist  edges,  with  a 
dry,  yellowish-brown  stripe  half  an  inch  wide  in  the 
centre — all  of  these  changes  without  any  very  great 
change  in  the  patient  in  other  respects,  except  that 
the  pulse  rose  to  130.  She  was  delirious  but  one  day, 
and  then  she  could  not  get  her  head  together — it  was 
scattered  all  about  the  room.  Baptisia  got  it  together 
for  her.  Thus  the  case  ran  for  five  weeks,  before  re- 
covery, which  was  perfect.  The  peculiarity  of  the 
case,  to  me,  consisted  in  a  chilliness,  very  distressing,, 
which  lasted  most  of  the  time  for  three  weeks,  to- 
gether with  sticky,  clammy,  and  drenching  sweats, 
day  and  night,  the  chilliness  and  perspiration  at  the: 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         121 

same  time,  and,  when  the  sweat  was  most  profuse,  the: 
patient  complained  most  of  the  cold,  and  the  remedies, 
that  ought  to  have  relieved  those  symptoms  did  not 
do  it,  although  studied  very  closely,  and  when  they 
did  abate  it  was  so  gradual  that  I  have  doubts  whether 
medicine  or  time  did  most  of  it. 


CLIMATE  OF  LOS  ANGELES  COUNTY 
FROM  WILMINGTON  TO  THE  MISSION 
SAN  GABRIEL. 


BY  D.  M.  BROWN,  M.  D.,  HEALDSBURG,  CAL. 

Commencing  at  Wilmington,  on  the  coast,  you  have 
a  climate  of  cold,  heavy  fogs,  and  of  cold  winds,  an 
atmosphere  more  or  less  continually  filled  with  sand 
and  dust.  As  you  go  further  inland  the  fogs  and 
winds  are  not  so  frequent.  At  Los  Angeles,  although 
the  fogs  are  heavy,  the  winds  are  modified  so  as  not 
to  be  disagreeable.  On  account  of  the  entire  lack  of 
sewerage,  except  by  open  zanjas  or  irrigating  ditches, 
and  a  sulphuric  acid  factory,  commonly  known  as  gas- 
works, the  town  is  filled  with  odors  rivaling  the  cele- 
brated city  of  Cologne.  A  more  unhealthy  spot  it 
would  be  hard  to  find  on  this  coast.  Many  diseases 
prevail  in  an  epidemic  form  a  large  portion  of  the 
year.  Scarlatina  and  typhus  are  rarely  absent,  and 
one  year  ago  swept  through  the  whole  county  like  a 
Chicago  fire,  and  with  a  terribly  destructive  effect. 
The  mortality  from  scarlatina  was  over  ninety  per 
'Cent.,  especially  in  children.  Inasmuch  as  everything 
eaten,  drank,  or  worn  in  the  county  comes  from  Los 
Angeles,  it  is  not  at  all  difficult  to  account  for  the  ex- 
tensive ravages  of  these  diseases.  For  pulmonary 
affections,  a  worse  climate  than  that  of  Los  Angeles 
can  scarcely  be  conceived  of.  On  the  low  land,  along 


PACIFIC   HOMOEOPATHIC   MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         123 

the  river  of  the  same  name,  which  fortunately  runs  to  • 
the  leeward  of  the  town,  all  the  filth  and  refuse  of  a 
town  of  ten  thousand  inhabitants  is  deposited,  and 
were  it  not  for  the  strong  sea-breeze  the  city  would  be 
uninhabitable.  Leaving  Los  Angeles,  and  following 
the  river  north-west,  you  come  to  the  oil  region  of  San 
Fernando,  concerning  which  I  have  nothing  to  say. 
Following  the  San  Gabriel  River  valley,  you  come, 
after  sixty  miles'  travel,  to  San  Bernardino,  a  very 
pretty  town,  famous  for  being  an  old  Mormon  settle- 
ment, and  noted  for  its  artesian  wells,  which  supply 
nearly  every  house  with  an  abundance  of  excellent 
water.  San  Bernardino  lies  at  the  bottom  of  a  very 
low  valley,  and  from  its  being  surrounded  by  moun- 
tains gets  all  the  heat  there  is  to  be  had  in  Summer 
and  all  the  cold  in  Winter ;  it  is  said  that  the  inhabit- 
ants never  use  any  fire  in  Summer,  but  do  all  their 
cooking  in  the  sun.  The  celebrated  Riverside  colony 
lies  to  the  right  of  San  Bernardino  as  you  ascend  the 
valley.  Glowing  accounts  of  the  wealth,  beauty  and 
salubrity  of  that  place  are  given,  all  of  which  are  more 
or  less  true.  Nothing  is  said,  however,  of  the  gentle 
zephyrs  which  occasionally,  in  the  spring  and  fall, 
sweep  through  the  Santa  Ana  Valley,  overturning 
outhouses,  tearing  up  trees,  and  performing  other 
antics,  as  only  a  " gentle  zephyr"  can.  All  through 
that  section  of  the  country,  which  is  part  and  parcel 
of  the  whole  Los  Angeles  Valley,  though  subdivided 
by  names,  dense  fogs  and  cold,  high  winds,  with  severe 
frosts,  prevail.  As  you  get  above  the  valley  into  the 
mountains,  the  climate  improves,  the  fogs  are  not  as 
dense,  nor  the  winds  as  severe,  and  asthmatic  patients 
get  along  very  comfortably. 

The  Mission  San  Gabriel,  about  eight  miles  back 


1 24  TRANSACTIONS. 

of  Los  Angeles,  was  settled  by  the  Jesuit  Padres,  with 
their  usual  good  judgment.  Of  the  old  church,  with 
its  historical  bells,  one  of  which  contains  a  great  deal 
of  silver,  thrown  into  the  molten  metal  by  the  fair 
ladies  of  Spain,  and  of  the  many  beautiful  private  resi- 
dences in  the  vicinity,  I  shall  say  nothing,  excepting 
that  to  lovers  of  beautiful  scenery  and  good  wine 
many  of  them  are  well  worth  visiting. 

Situated  between  the  Los  Angeles  and  San  Gabriel 
rivers,  the  town  or  district  of  San  Gabriel  is  one  of 
the  most  favored  spots  in  regard  to  climate  which  can 
be  found  in  California.  Lying  at  the  foot  of  the  Sierra 
Madre  Mountains,  it  is  entirely  sheltered  from  the 
winds  which  sweep  up  the  valleys  before  described, 
and  is  almost  entirely  free  from  fog  and  frost ;  high 
winds  never  touch  it,  unless  it  be  the  extreme  outer 
edge  of  a  zephyr,  which  may,  if  it  is  of  unusual  force 
and  magnitude,  occasionally  do  a  little  mischief.  The 
air  is  dry  and  warm,  and  very  free  from  the  dust  so 
prevalent  all  over  California.  Pulmonary  diseases  are 
very  favorably  affected  or  influenced  by  this  climate, 
the  nights  not  being  as  cold  as  in  many  places  within 
twenty  miles,  nor  the  days  so  hot,  the  mercury  rang- 
ing about  eighty  or  ninety  degrees  during  the  day  in 
Summer,  and  seventy  degrees  at  night.  I  have  known 
of  Several  instances  of  persons  coming  there  to  die  of 
phthisis  disappointing  everybody  by  getting  well  on 
air  and  grapes,  and  being  hearty  and  strong,  and  work- 
ing at  their  trade  (two  of  them  were  carpenters)  every 
day  from  the  day  of  their  arrival.  Asthmatic  diseases 
do  not  get  along  so  well;  they  seem  to  want  the  air  of 
the  mountains,  and  if  they  so  choose,  they  can  have 
it  by  going  to  one  of  the  numerous  ranches  on  the 
sierras,  above  the  Mission. 


EPILEPSY. 

BY  J.  N.  ECKEL,  M.  D.,  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

Epilpesy  belongs  to  the  disease  of  Neurosis.  Hip- 
pocrates, Aretanus,  and  other  ancient  writers  have  al- 
ready given  a  good  description  of  the  disease.  It  may 
appear  either  suddenly,  or  there  may  be  certain  symp- 
toms— such  as  vertigo,  a  characteristic  and  very  im- 
portant, and,  I  may  say,  one  of  the  most  prominent 
before  a  real  symptom  or  classical  attack,  as  Trousseau 
calls  it,  may  occur. 

We  see  a  change  of  character  in  the  person  afflict 
•ed  with  the  disease,  such  as  irritability,  low  spirits, 
moody,  has  disturbed  sleep  and  bad  dreams,  involun- 
tary discharges  of  urine  and  faeces  at  night ;  headache, 
indigestion,  a  feeling  of  a  fine  breeze  of  air  from  be- 
low, upward  toward  the  head  (the  true  aura  apoplec- 
tica).  This  latter  symptom  is,  however,  very  often 
wanting,  and  attacks  of  Epilepsy  may  occur  without 
the  true  aura. 

I  once  saw  a  case  of  a  boy  three  years  old,  who  had 
vertigo  for  many  weeks,  and  finally  nocturnal  par- 
oxysms set  in.  The  attending  physician  of  the  old 
school  gave  him  Vermifuge  and  Castor  Oil.  These 
remedies  had  their  effect,  yet  the  boy  was  not  cured. 

The  parents  consulted  a  Homoeopathic  physician  in 
their  own  county,  who  was  puzzled  in  regard  to  the 
boy's  troubles.  The  diagnosis  was  not  deficient.  In 
this  case  Epilepsy  was  symptomatic,  caused  by  crude 


126  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

substances  which  the  boy  ate,  ad  libitum :  such  as 
straw,  chalk,  and  small  pebble  -  stones.  A  patient 
attacked  with  epileptic  vertigo  does  not  often  lose 
consciousness;  he  has  time  to  take  hold  of  some- 
thing to  prevent  him  from  falling.  The  patient  is 
for  a*  few  moments  immovable,  the  eyes  are  fixed,  the 
face  is  pale,  which  changes  in  another  moment  to  red* 
with  a  peruptive,  convulsive  motion  of  some  of  the 
facial  muscles.  Sometimes  the  patient  may  have 
numbness  of  some  of  the  extremities  in  connection 
with  the  last  mentioned  symptoms.  Heretofore  we 
had  the  petit  mal  in  vino ;  now  we  go  over  to  the 
more  severe  form  of  Epilepsy.  Here  we  have  a  dif- 
ferent picture  before  us. 

The  attacks  are  sudden,  the  patient  falls  down ;  the 
tonic  and  clonic  spasms  are  intense ;  consciousness 
and  sensibility  are  entirely  destroyed  during  the  at- 
tack ;  you  can  pinch  him,  and  he  has  no  knowledge 
of  the  procedure :  he  shrieks,  has  froth  at  the  mouth. 
The  face  is  dark  red,  the  veins  about  the  neck  and 
face  swell  up,  the  breathing  is  difficult,  stertorous,  and 
slow;  the  pulse  small  and  quick.  The  whole  body 
may  be  immovable  and  in  a  tetanic  condition.  These 
phenomena  change,  however;  severe  convulsive  jerk- 
ings  of  the  muscles  of  the  face,  the  countenance  is 
terribly  distorted,  the  head  is  thrown  about  with  vio- 
lence, or  is  thrown  to  one  or  the  other  side ;  one  side 
of  the  body  may  be  in  convulsive  motion  or  jerkings, 
the  other  half  is  tetanic.  From  jerking  of  single  mus- 
cles there  is  a  cross  over  to  the  most  violent  convul- 
sion—  motion  of  all  the  muscles  of  the  face.  The 
tongue  is  bitten  in  consequence  of  the  violent  grind- 
ing of  the  teeth,  even  teeth  may  break  off.  As  a  gen- 
eral rule,  the  thumbs  are  clenched,  the  difficulty  of 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY. 

breathing  continues  during  the  whole  paroxysm ;  the 
convulsive  jerking  may  be  so  severe  that  dislocation, 
or  fractures  of  bones  may  occur;  the  whole  body  is 
bathed  in  profuse  perspiration ;  discharges  of  urine,, 
faeces,   even   seminal   discharges,  occur ;   paroxysms 
from  three  to  five  minutes,  and  even  longer.     The 
storm  of  convulsive  jerking  stops,  and    once  more 
a  calm  breeze,  with  a  pale  face,  free  respiration,  and 
a  perfect  quietude  of  the  muscles  shows  itself.     How- 
ever, the  poor  sufferer  remains  for  some  time  in  a 
comatose  condition,  with  a  somew.hat  noisy  breath- 
ing, and   slowly   does   he  awake,   with   difficulty  of 
speech  and  headache,  and  it  takes  hours  before  he 
loses  the  latter  symptoms.    He  wakes  up  with  a  sense 
of   extreme  exhaustion.      Echymoses  of  extremities 
show^themselves  ;  the  conjunctiva  is  red  and  congested 
The  patient  either  falls  on  his  face  or  backward.    The 
severer  the  fall,  says  Hispin,  the  more  violent  are  the 
spasms.     The  oftener  the  Epileptic  paroxysms  occur 
the  more  does  the  normal  condition  of  the  mind  be- 
come weakened,  the  memory  gets  bad,  and  an  idiotic 
expression  of  the  face  ensues  ;    the  patient  becomes 
indifferent  to  things  about  him  ;  he  becomes  irritable, 
even  profane — in  fact,  has  a  tendency  to  maniac  deeds.. 
"  The  muscles,"  says  Hasse,  "  have  no  electric  reac- 
tion, with  the  exception  of  the   abdominal  muscles, 
which  show  a  decided  contractibility."     The  truth  of 
this   I  ascertained  by  means  of  a  Dubois- Raymond 
apparatus  in  a  case  of  nine  years'  standing. 

Cause  of  Epilepsy :  Inheritance,  violent  shocks  to 
the  brain,  such  as  blows,  falls,  etc.,  fever,  exostosis  of 
the  skull,  sexual  excesses,  delirium  tremens,  tumors 
of  the  brain,  effusion,  etc.  It  is  often  produced  by 
reflex  action,  as,  for  instance,  uterine  disease ;  entozo- 
asia  is  looked  upon  as  a  cause. 


128  TRANSACTIONS   OF   THE 

The  prognosis  generally  is  not  very  favorable.  The 
longer  the  paroxysms  last,  and  the  oftener  they  return, 
the  less  hope  can  we  entertain  of  curing  the  patient, 
inasmuch  as  the  psychological  disturbances  become 
more  and  more  developed.  In  regard  to  the  path- 
ological anatomy  medical  writers  differ.  Schroeder 
von  du  Kolk  gives  as  the  cause,  dilatation  of  the  blood- 
vessels supplying  the  medulla  oblongata ;  Russmond 
and  others,  an  anaemic  condition  of  these  parts.  Ho- 
mceopathists  cultivate  the  art  of  curing  diseases,  and 
-do  not  trouble  themselves  with  the  pathological  pic- 
ture after  death.  The  last  three  years,  the  Homoeo- 
pathic literature  has  cited  eighteen  favorable  cases. 

Treatment. — Epileptic  persons  ought  not  to  marry. 
The  moral  and  physical  education  must  be  carefully 
•watched.  Nutritious  and  easily  digestible  food  should 
only  be  advisable. 

Bellad.,  or  Atropin,  is  one  of  the  foremost  remedies. 
The  latter  has,  in  a  case  of  nocturnal  epilepsy  of  nine 
years'  standing,  been  of  good  service  to  me  during  a 
paroxysm,  especially  when  there  is  a  decided  congest- 
ive condition  of  the  brain,  with  vertigo,  dilated  pupils ; 
yet  Rana  bufo  has  been  the  best  remedy.  Its  effect 
was  lasting,  inasmuch  as  it  kept  off  the  paroxysms 
for  ten  months.  A  complete  change  of  character, 
vigor  of  the  mental  faculties,  stools  became  normal ; 
within  a  few  months  the  patient  had  only  one  slight 
attack  during  the  night.  She  was  able  to  walk  about 
the  next  day,  while  formerly  she  had  to  keep  her  bed 
for  days,  and  complained  of  extreme  exhaustion. 
Next  to  the  above  comes  Cuprum  and  Opium.  Both 
are  indicated  in  nocturnal  attacks.  In  cases  produced 
by  sexual  excesses,  Digitalis,  Phosphor.,  Phosphor, 
acid.  In  hystero-epilepsy,  Puls.  Ignat.  The  old-school 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         1 29 

conditio  sine  qua  non  is  Bromide  of  Potassium.  In 
a  case  of  twelve  years'  standing,  even  Bromide  of 
Potassa  to  the  amount  of  four  pounds  was  used  during 
a  few  years'  treatment  by  a  practitioner  of  the  old 
school.  The  paroxysms  kept  off  two  months.  Atro- 
pin  3d  and  6th,  Rana  bufo  i2th  and  soth,  kept  them 
off  ten  months.  In  another  case  of  sixteen  years'  stand- 
ing, Atropin  3d  kept  the  paroxysms  off  two  months. 
Homoeopathy  is  decidedly  ahead,  and,  with  our  great 
founder,  we  can  truly  say,  "Die  milde  Macht  ist  gross? 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE 

FEBRUARY  23d,  1876. 

A  special  meeting  of  the  Society  was  held  at  the 
rooms  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  to 
take  action  concerning  the  advisability  of  incorporat- 
ing under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  California. 

The  following  copy  of  the  application  will  explain 
the  doings  of  this  meeting: 

"  At  a  regular  meeting  of  the  Pacific  Homoeopathic 
Medical  Society  of  the  State  of  California,  a  society 
associated  together  for  scientific  purposes  only,  and 
not  for  pecuniary  profit,  held  at  the  office  and  place 
of  meeting  of  said  society,  in  the  city  and  county  of 
San  Francisco,  on  the  23d  of  February,  A.  D.  1876, 
a  majority  of  the  members  of  said  society  were  pres- 
ent. Dr.  J.  M.  Selfridge,  President  of  the  Society, 
presided  over  the  meeting,  and  Dr.  G.  M.  Pease,  Sec- 
retary of  the  Society,  acted  as  secretary  thereof. 
Thereupon  and  at  said  meeting  it  was 

Resolved,  ist.  That  this  society  do  incorporate  itself 
under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  California. 

2d.  That  the  name  of  this  society  is  and  shall  be  the 
Pacific  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  of  the  State  of 
California. 

3d.  That  the  number  of  Directors  who  shall  man- 
•age  the  affairs  of  said  corporation  shall  be  five. 

4th.  That  we  do  now  proceed  to  the  election  of  Di- 
rectors, who  shall  serve  until  the  election  of  Directors 
•under  the  incorporation,  and  their  qualification  as  such. 

Thereupon  Dr.  J.  S.  Beakley  was  appointed  judge 
of  election,  and  an  election  for  five  Directors  as  afore- 
said was  held  by  ballot,  conducted  by  the  said  officers 
and  said  J.  S.  Beakley  as  Judge  of  Election;  and  at 
said  election  the  following-named  gentlemen  were 
elected  as  such  Directors,  to  wit :  J.  M.  Selfridge, 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.          13! 

residing  in  Oakland,  California ;  H.  H.  Ingerson,  San 
Francisco;  J.  J.  Gushing,  Saucelito ;  J.  A.  Albertson, 
-San  Francisco;  G.  M.  Pease,  San  Francisco. 

Now,  therefore,  know  all  men  by  these  presents, 
that  we,  the  undersigned,  have  this  day  associated 
ourselves  together  for  the  purpose  of  incorporating, 
under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  California,  a  corpora- 
lion  to  be  known  by  the  corporate  name  of  "  Pacific 
Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  of  the  State  of  Cali- 
fornia." And  we  hereby  certify  that  the  purpose  for 
which  this  corporation  is  to  be  formed  is  the  advance- 
ment of  the  science  of  medicine  and  surgery. 

That  the  time  of  its  existence  shall  be  fifty  years 
from  and  after  the  date  of  its  incorporation. 

That  the  number  of  its  Directors  shall  be  five,  and 
that  the  names  and  residences  of  those  who  shall 
serve  until  the  election  of  such  officers  and  their  qual- 
ifications are  J.  M.  Selfridge,  residing  in  Oakland, 
California;  H.  H.  Ingerson,  San  Francisco;  J.  J. 
Cushing,  Saucelito ;  J.  A.  Albertson,  San  Francisco  ; 
G.  M.  Pease,  San  Francisco. 

That  this  corporation  has  no  capital  stock. 
In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands 
and  seals  this  28th  day  of  February,  A.  D.  1876. 

J.  M.  SELFRIDGE. 
H.  H.  INGERSON, 
J.  J.  CUSHING, 
J.  A.  ALBERTSON, 
G.  M.  PEASE. 

Signed  and  sealed  in  presence  of 
"SH!11  F,  O.  WEGENER. 


132  TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE 

STATE  OF  CALIFORNIA,  ) 

CITY  AND  COUNTY  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO,   j  ss* 

J.  M.  Selfridge,  G.  M.  Pease,  and  J.  S.  Beakleyr 
being,  each  for  himself,  duly  sworn,  deposes  and  says- 
that  he  has  read  the  foregoing  certificate,  and  knows 
the  contents  thereof,  and  that  the  same  is  true  of  his 
own  knowledge  ;  and  the  said  J.  M.  Selfridge  deposes 
and  says  that  he  is  the  President  named  in  said  cer- 
tificate ;  and  the  said  G.  M.  Pease  deposes  and  says 
that  he  is  the  Secretary  named  in  said  certificate,  and 
the  said  J.  S.  Beakley  deposes  and  says  that  he  is  the 
Judge  of  Election  named  in  said  certificate. 

(Signed)  J.  M.  SELFRIDGE. 

G.  M.  PEASE. 
J.  S.  BEAKLEY. 

Subscribed  and  sworn  to  before  me,  this  2d  day  of 
March,  A.  D.  1876. 

F.  O.  WEGENER, 

Notary  Public. 


STATE  OF  CALIFORNIA,  ) 

CITY  AND  COUNTY  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO,   j  w 

On  the  2d  day  of  March,  A.  D.  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  seventy-six,  before  me,  F.  O.  Wegener,  a 
Notary  Public  in  and  for  said  city  and  county,  resid- 
ing therein,  duly  commissioned  and  sworn,  person- 
ally appeared  J.  M.  Selfridge,  H.  H.  Ingerson,  John 
J.  Cushing,  J.  A.  Albertson,  and  G.  M.  Pease,  known 
to  me  to  be  the  persons  described  in,  whose  names 
are  subscribed  to  and  who  executed  the  within  instru- 
ment, and  duly  acknowledged  to  me  that  they  exe- 
cuted the  same. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         133 

In  witness  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand 
and  affixed  my  official  seal,  at  my  office  in  the  city  and 
•county  of  San  Francisco,  the  day  and  year  last  above 
written. 

i^i!*1)  F.  O.  WEGENER, 

Notary  Public. 

In  addition  to  the  above,  it  was  voted  at  this  meet- 
ing to  change  the  name  of  the  Society  to  conform  to 
the  name  in  the  application,  and  to  have  the  annual 
meeting  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  May,  and  the 
.semi-annual   meeting  on  the  second  Wednesday  of 
November,  and  that  the  Constitution  and  By-laws  be 
.so  amended  as  to  include  these  alterations  and  con- 
form thereto. 


134  TRANSACTIONS   OF   THE 

The  Pacific  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society  of  the 
State  of  California  held  its  annual  meeting  at  the 
rooms  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  232 
Sutter  street,  Wednesday,  May  10,  1876,  at  10  A.  M. 
There  were  present  Drs.  Albertson,  Pease,  Ledyard, 
Hughson,  Geary,  Liliencrantz,  Selfridge,  Ingerson,. 
Knapp,  Gushing,  Arnold,  Ballard,  and  Barrows. 

The  records  of  the  last  meeting  were  read  by  the 
Secretary. 

Dr.  Geary  said  there  was  a  slight  amendment  to- 
make — that,  instead  of  saying  "  vegetables  that  grow 
in  the  ground,"  it  should  be  changed  to  "  roots  that 
grow  in  the  ground."  We,  being  learned  men,  might 
as  well  be  correct  in  small  things. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said  that,  in  connection  with  Dr.. 
Liliencrantz'  paper,  he  spoke  of  a  placenta  remain- 
ing in  the  uterus  five  months,  instead  of  Jive  weeks. 

The  following  were  proposed  for  membership :  J. 
A.  Miller,  M.  D.,  of  Calistoga ;  E.  W.  Charles,  M.  D.,. 
of  Santa  Rosa;  P.  Howe,  M.  D.,  of  Westminster;  G 
E.  Davis,  M.  D.,  of  San  Francisco ;  Mrs.  L.  A.  Bal- 
lard, M.  D.,  of  San  Francisco. 

These  applications  were  referred  to  the  Censors. 

The  Treasurer,  Dr.  Albertson,  made  his  report  as 
follows : 

SAN    FRANCISCO,  May  10,   1876. 

J.  A.  Albertson  in  account  with  the  Pacific  Homoeo- 
pathic Medical  Society:  Dr.  Cr. 
To  Fees  and  Dues  from  Mem- 
bers from  November,  1874, 

to  date $6 1  50 

Cash  paid  for  Rent  of  Hall,  Post- 
age,   Stationery,     Printing, 

etc $34  IS 

Balance  in  Treasury $27  37 

J.  A.  ALBERTSON,  Treasurer. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         135, 

Dr.  Pease,  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Print- 
ing, and  also  on  Legislation,  reported  that,  after  watch- 
ing the  doings  of  the  Legislature,  a  suggestion  for  a 
law  was  framed  by  the  committee,  and  forwarded  to 
various  members  of  the  Legislature,  and  from  themv 
at  different  times,  there  were  received  letters  and  cop- 
ies of  proposed  laws  and  amendments,  and  finally,  on 
the  passage  of  the  law,  it  was  found  to  agree  very 
closely  with  the  plan  proposed  by  your  committee. 
So  far  as  printing  the  Transactions  of  the  Society  is 
concerned,  it  has  been  going  on  as  rapidly  as  possi- 
ble, and  nearly  all  up  to  the  present  is  in  type.  We 
report  progress  only,  but  our  work  is  not  all  done. 

The  Censors  reported  favorably  upon  the  names  of 
Dr.  G.  E.  Davis  and  Dr.  L.  A.  Ballard,  and,  being 
balloted  for,  they  were  elected  to  membership. 

Dr.  Pease  said  that  as  the  new  State  law  required 
a  physician  to  have  a  certificate  before  he  can  prac- 
tice, and  if  without  a  diploma,  he  must  pass  an  exam- 
ination, which  if  successful,  would,  as  far  as  the  State 
of  California  is  concerned,  be  equal  to  a  license  or  di- 
ploma, we  should  so  alter  or  amend  our  By-laws  as, 
to  admit  to  membership  any  party  who  holds  a  license 
under  the  law. 

Dr.  Ingerson  thought  it  might  be  well  enough  to 
do  it  at  some  future  meeting,  after  some  have  passed 
examination.  The  Board  of  Examiners  could  not  or- 
ganize, and  do  it  to-day. 

By  direction  of  the  President  the  Secretary  read 
the  law  regulating  the  practice  of  medicine  in  the 
State,  as  passed  by  the  last  Legislature. 

Dr.  Pease  remarked  that,  in  order  to  expedite  mat- 
ters, he  had  prepared  a  printed  list  of  the  members, 
and  in  voting  for  the  Board  of  Examiners  all  that 


136  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

will  have  to  be  done  is  to  scratch  out  those  names 
not  desired,  leaving  seven ;  and  he  suggested  that  the 
seven  having  the  highest  number  of  votes  be  consid- 
ered as  the  elected  Board,  and  the  two  next  highest 
be  declared  as  alternates. 

Dr.  Ingerson  presented  a  communication  that  he 
Would  like  to  have  read  before  this  Board  is  appoint- 
ed. It  was  a  proposition  from  the  California  Society 
to  appoint  a  committee  to  confer  with  a  committee  of 
theirs.  He  would  like  to  hear  it  read  in  the  Society, 
and  have  it  received  or  rejected. 

Dr.  Geary  asked  what  society  this  was.  He  did 
not  know  any  other  society  here  but  ours. 

Dr.  Selfridge  suggested  that  the  communication  be 
delayed  until  after  this  election,  and  it  would  come  up 
properly  under  the  head  of  "  new  business  ;"  and,  as 
it  has  no  bearing  on  this  particular  point,  he  would 
like  to  have  it  laid  over. 

He  thought  this  Board  of  Examiners  ought  to  live 
somewhere  in  the  same  vicinity. 

Dr.  Albertson  remarked  that  the  law  says  that  all 
seven  shall  sign  such  certificate,  so  it  would  be  well 
to  have  them  reside  near  together,  for  convenience. 

A  ballot  was  taken  for  a  Board  of  Examiners,  result- 
ing in  the  election  of  Drs.  Geary,  Selfridge,  Pease, 
Albertson,  Gushing,  Hughson,  and  Liliencrantz.  Dr. 
Davis  received  the  next  highest  vote,  and  was  declar- 
ed one  of  the  alternates.  Two  others  being  tied,  a 
new  ballot  was  taken,  and  Dr.  Ledyard  was  elected 
as  the  second  alternate. 

The  President  declared  the  next  business  to  be  the 
nomination  and  election  of  officers  for  the  ensuing 
year. 

While  the  ballots  were  being  prepared,  Dr.  Geary, 
in  behalf  of  the  Censors,  recommended  Dr.  G.  S.  Bar- 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         137 

TOWS,  of  San  Jose,  for  membership.  After  ballots  had 
been  taken,  Dr.  Geary  was  declared  elected  President. 

Dr.  Geary  said :  "  Now,  gentlemen,  if  it  is  all  the 
same  to  you,  I  think  that  most  of  my  friends  here 
know  that  I  would  prefer  not  to  hold  such  an  office, 
and  unless  it  is  made  one  of  the  laws  of  the  Medes 
and  Persians',  I  would  prefer  that  Dr.  Hughson,  if  he 
can  come  down  here  and  perform  the  duties  of  the 
office,  would  accept  the  position." 

The  President  replied  that  as  Dr.  Geary  does  not 
withdraw  his  name  he  is  declared  elected. 

Nominations  were  made  for  Vice-President,  and  Dr. 
Hughson  was  elected  to  that  office.  For  Secretary, 
Dr.  Albertson  nominated  Dr.  Pease,  and  said  that  he 
hoped  there  would  be  no  contest — that  the  present 
Secretary  had,  during  his  term,  performed  the  duties 
of  the  position  satisfactorily  to  all,  and  he  never  knew 
a  man  to  perform  so  much  work  before  for  so  little 
pay. 

Dr.  Geary  had  something  to  say,  as  follows :  "  I 
beg  that  Dr.  Pease  will  be  declared  unanimously  elect- 
ed the  Secretary  of  this  Society.  You  know  very  well 
that  no  gentleman  could  be  more  efficient  in  the  dis- 
charge of  the  duties  of  that  position,  and  it  would  be 
difficult  to  get  one  equally  so.  The  amount  of  labor 
and  care  that  Dr.  Pease  has  shown  us  during  the  past 
two  years  I  think  has  fully  satisfied  us  of  his  fitness 
for  the  position,  and  I  only  wish  that  there  was  a  high 
salary  connected  with  it." 

Dr.  Selfridge  said,  It  is  proposed  that  Dr.  Pease 
be  elected  by  acclamation. 

Dr.  Pease  was  afraid  that  could  not  be  done,  as  it 
is  unconstitutional,  officers  having  to  be  elected  by 
ballot. 


138  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

Dr.  Davis  moved  that  Dr.  Albertson  cast  the  ballot 
for  the  Society. 

The  motion  was  carried,  and  Dr.  Albertson  cast  the 
vote  of  the  Society  for  Dr.  Pease. 

For  Treasurer,  Drs.  Davis  and  Albertson  were 
nominated. 

Dr.  Davis  moved  that  the  Secretary  cast  the  ballot 
for  Dr.  Albertson. 

Dr.  Selfridge  stated  that  such  would  be  out  of 
order  when  there  are  two  candidates. 

A  ballot  being  taken,  Dr.  Albertson  was  declared 
elected. 

Dr.  Davis  moved  that  the  election  of  Dr.  Albert- 
son  be  made  unanimous. 

The  motion  being  put  was  carried. 

Nominations  for  Board  of  Censors  were  now  made, 
and  a  ballot  was  had ;  which,  after  two  trials,  resulted 
in  the  election  of  Drs.  Selfridge,  Wilson,  and  Jenks. 

Dr.  Geary  moved  that  the  Secretary  now  cast  the 
ballot  for  Dr.  Barrows,  of  San  Jose,  for  membership. 

This  motion  being  carried,  the  Secretary  did  as  in- 
structed, and  Dr.  Barrows  was  declared  elected. 

Dr.  Davis  said  that  Dr.  Esten  desired  him  to  say 
that  his  sympathies  and  well  wishes  were  with  this 
Society,  but  on  account  of  ill  health,  and  because  he 
intends  removing  his  residence  from  the  city,  he 
thought  it  best  not  to  join  us  now;  he  is  suffering 
from  asthma,  and  he  might  in  the  Fall  go  out  of  the 
country  altogether. 

Dr.  Geary  thought  that  removing  frooi  the  city 
would  be  no  objection  to  Dr.  Esten's  joining  the  So- 
ciety, and  he  moved  that  a  message  be  conveyed  to 
him,  that,  unless  he  had  some  other  grounds  of  ob- 
jection, he  be  proposed  for  membership. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said  he  should  have  to  declare  that 
motion  out  of  order,  because  it  would  look  as  if  we 
were  courting  him. 

The  next  business  in  order  was  declared  to  be  the 
appointment  of  a  delegate  to  represent  the  Society  at 
the  World's  Homoeopathic  Convention  of  the  Ameri- 
can Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  to  be  held  in  Phila- 
delphia. 

Dr.  Pease  said  :  "  I  have  taken  considerable  liberty 
upon  myself,  hoping  to  receive  the  sanction  of  the 
Society.  When  Dr.  Eckel  went  East  it  was  supposed, 
that  he  might  remain  some  time,  and  he  was  written 
to,  and  asked  to  act  as  our  delegate,  with  the  assur- 
ance that  the  Society  would  appoint  him  as  such- 
After  the  receipt  of  that  letter  he  telegraphed  to  send 
him  the  papers.  After  conference  with  some  of  the 
members,  it  was  decided  to  forward  the  necessary  cer- 
tificate, and,  to-day,  a  letter  acknowledging  the  receipt 
of  it  has  arrived." 

The  President  asked  what  action  would  betaken  in 
the  matter. 

Dr.  Davis  moved  that  the  Society  indorse  the  action 
of  the  Secretary  in  this  matter. 

Dr.  Ingerson  asked  if  they  could    indorse  it,  and 
could  not  Dr.  Eraser  go  there  and  take  advantage  oF 
it,  saying  we  had  no  delegate. 

Dr.  Geary  then  moved  that  Dr.  Eckel  be  appointed 
as  our  delegate  to  the  Convention,  and  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  Homoeopathic  school  on  this  coast. 

This  motion  was  carried,  and  Dr.  Eckel  was  declared 
appointed  the  delegate  from  this  Society,  and  the  Sec- 
retary instructed  to  so  inform  him. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said:  "Gentlemen  of  the  Society,  at 
this  point  of  proceedings  it  would  be  necessary  for  me- 


TRANSACTIONS   OF   THE 

to  deliver  a  valedictory,  but  I  have  none.  The  annual 
meeting  having  been  changed  from  the  Fall  to  this 
4ime,  with  the  pressure  of  business  and  the  writing-up 
of  two  papers,  has  made  it  impossible  for  me  to  de- 
liver an  address  on  this  occasion ;  and  I,  of  course, 
"wish  to  ask  .pardon  of  the  Society  for  the  apparent 
.neglect  which  circumstances  forced  upon  me." 

It  was  moved,  seconded,  and  carried  that  the  apol- 
ogy of  Dr.  Selfridge  be  received. 

At  this  point  a  letter  from  Dr.  W.  N.  Griswold  was 
.read  by  the  Secretary,  requesting  that  steps  be  taken 
toward  bringing  about  a  union  of  the  two  societies. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said:  "It  is  a  paper  evidently  written 
^without  any  authority.  It  is  not  official.  He  merely 
.-states  that  he  represents  the  prevailing  sentiment  of 
Jbis  society,  but  it  is  certainly  unofficial." 

Dr.  Geary  moved  that  the  paper  be  laid  upon  the 
'table  without  taking  further  action  in  the  mater. 

The  President  requested  the  Secretary  to  read  two 
letters  which  he  had  received  from  Dr.  C.  W.  Brey- 
.fogle,  of  San  Jose,  in  regard  to  this  matter. 

This  being  done,  the  President  said  he  had  tele- 
graphed him  that  there  was  not  time  to  call  the  mem- 
bers together,  and  afterward  wrote  him  a  letter. 

[The  letters  will  be  found  in  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee, on  pages  150-156.] 

Dr.  Albertson  said  :  "  Those  letters  came  from  the 

President  of  the  other  society,  and  he  is,  so  far  as  I 

know,  a  gentleman,  and  I  think  they  are  deserving  of 

.some  attention,  and  I  move  that  they  be  referred  to  a 

•committee  of  three,  appointed  by  the  Chair." 

Dr.  Hughson  said:  "Some  time  since  I  received  a 
"very  brief  letter  from  Dr.  Griswold,  asking  me  if  I  was 
willing  or  anxious  that  the  two  societies  should  be 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY. 

united ;  that  seemed  to  be  the  purport,  and,  in  fact,, 
the  substance  of  the  letter.     I  answered,  that  I  con- 
sidered it  a  deplorable  state  of  affairs  that  there  should 
be  a  division,  and  if  a  union  could  be  effected  that 
would  injure  no  person  in  the  Society,  I  would  cer- 
tainly favor  it.     In  fact,  I  further  informed  him  that  I 
knew  nothing  of  the  unfortunate  division  ;  that  I  had 
purposely  remained  in  ignorance  of  it.     In  fact,  the 
story  had   been  commenced  with  me,  three  or  four 
times,  by  different  parties,  and  I  have  always  said : 
"  Now  I  do  not  wish  to  know  anything  about  it ;  I  do 
not  wish  anything  to  do  with  it,  for  I  cannot  hear  from, 
you  but  one  side  of  it  any  way,"  and  I  then  asked 
him  to   let  me  know  something  of  his  side  of  the 
question,  and  he  wrote  me  a  lengthy  letter  containing: 
the  same  propositions,  exactly,  that  are  contained  in. 
the  letter  from  Dr.  Breyfogle,  but  I  think  the  latter 
clause  is  not  in  mine,  and  he  asked  me  if  I  would  not 
introduce  it  into  our  Society  here  and  urge  its  pas- 
sage.    And  then  there  was  another  thing  further  in 
the  letter  that,  to  my  mind,  contains  something  of  a 
threat.     He  said,  if  a  union  can  be  effected,  well  and 
good  for  all,  and  if  not,  we  propose  to  contest  your 
right  to  take  our  territory  and  appointing  an  examin- 
ing board.     They  claim  that  the  incorporation  of  our 
Society  is  illegal,  and  that  if  we  appointed  a  board 
for  examining  candidates  that  they  should  contest  it. 
I  wrote  to  Dr.  Griswold  that  I  would  prefer  to  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  matter.     Excepting  the  latter 
part,  it  was  a  fair,  open  letter." 

Dr.  Albertson  said :  "  I  feel  this'  in  my  muscles  and 
bones,  but  at  the  same  time  we  want  some  notice 
taken  of  this ;  we  do  not  wish  to  have  it  go  abroad 
that  they  are  endeavoring  to  heal  this  breach,  and 


142  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

that  we  took  no  notice  of  it.  We  can  appoint  a  com- 
mittee to  make  some  proposition  of  our  own — appoint 
-some  who  know  all  about  the  old  troubles,  and  let 
them  make  a  report,  and  let  that  report  embody  such 
•considerations  as  we  would  be  willing  to  receive  from 
them,  or  such  propositions  as  we  see  fit  to  make." 

Dr.  Geary  then  took  the  floor:  "  Mr.  Chairman,  we 
are  not  ready  for  the  question.  There  is  an  official 
letter,  or  a  pretended  official  letter,  from  one  who  pre- 
tends, to  be  the  secretary  of  a  society  that  assumes  to 
itself  the  right  to  be  the  only  fair  and  proper  repre- 
sentative of  Homoeopathy  on  this  coast,  who  have 
gone  further,  who  have  appointed  delegates  to  repre- 
sent Homoeopathy  at  the  World's  Convention  ;  who 
have  gone  further  still — who  have  not  only  appointed 
these  delegates,  but  have  appointed  their  board  of 
examiners,  and  have  themselves  recorded  in  Sacra- 
mento. These  men  have  assumed  all  this ;  it  is  all 
known  to  you,  all  who  know  the  history  of  this  affair, 
that  Drs.  Fraser  and  Hiller  have  been  the  moving 
-spirits  in  this  matter.  You  know,  as  well  as  I  do, 
gentlemen,  that  these  men  have  gained  the  ear,  and 
the  pen,  too,  of  the  members  of  the  medical  press, 
that  is,  the  Homoeopathic  medical  press  of  this  coun- 
try ;  that,  in  several  of  the  journals,  their  grievances 
have  been  paraded ;  that  they  have  made  it  appear 
abroad  that  all  the  disunion  arose  from  a  jealousy  on 
our  part  that  these  great  men  should  take  away  our 
practice,  and  that  we  should  be  left  in  the  lurch. 
These  things  have  of  late  been  paraded  in  the  jour- 
nals of  Boston  and  Philadelphia,  and  so  much  so  that 
the  editors  themselves  would  seem  as  if  they  thought 
that  these  men  had  good  right  to  complain.  From 
the  beginning  of  this  trouble  I  have  endeavored  to 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         143 

urge  upon  this  Society  to  publish  what  the  foolish  let- 
ter of  Dr.  J.  Murray  Moore  has  compelled  me  to  pub- 
lish on  my  own  account,  and  for  the  sake  of  that 
charity  which  they  come  now  to  seek.  These  shame- 
ful records  have  never  been  put  before  the  public  be- 
fore. We  do  not  recognize — I,  for  one,  do  not  recog- 
nize the  existence  of  their  society.  I  no  more  recog- 
nize a  society  having  Dr.  Fraser  as  its  moving  spirit 
than  I  recognize  a  society  of  banditti.  Profession- 
ally, he  is  a  disgrace  to  any  society ;  professionally,  I 
say,  he  has  cut  himself  off  from  all  sympathy,  from 
all  common  ground,  socially  and  professionally,  by  the 
publication  of  the  scandal  that  this  exposes.  [Point- 
ing to  a  pamphlet]  You  are  aware  that  this  has  ap- 
peared in  the  public  press,  and  here,  too,  in  this  city. 
What  have  we  in  common  with  this  man,  I  ask,  Mr. 
President,  what  have  we  in  common  with  this  man,  that 
we  should  temporize  with  him  ?  It  is  evident  that  this 
man  Fraser  is  using  this  foolish  man,  Murray  Moore, 
and  Dr.  Breyfogle  and  others,  who  were  ignorant  of 
this,  it  is  evident  he  is  using  these  as  his  cats-paws, 
while  he,  himself,  has  never  put  pen  to  paper,  and  he 
has  put  them  forward.  What  are  his  antecedents  ? 
Why,  when  he  has  proposed  himself  several  times  be- 
fore the  Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  why  has  he  been 
refused  ? 

The  President,  interrupting,  requested  Dr.  Geary 
to  keep  himself  to  the  point. 

Dr.  Geary,  continuing — "  I  will  stand  to  the  record. 
I  have  nothing  to  say  but  what  stands  here.  Now,  I 
maintain  that  we  have  no  right  to  appoint  any  com- 
mittee to  consider  any  proposition  from  these  men ; 
and,  first,  I  am  perfectly  willing  to  vote  for  any  of 
these  gentlemen  who  have  connected  themselves  with 


144  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

these  men,  in  ignorance  of  the  publications  of  Fraser 
and  his  unprofessional  acts.  I  am  perfectly  willing  to 
receive  these  gentlemen,  and  be  the  first  to  vote  for 
them,  provided  they  have  joined  what  they  call  a 
society  in  ignorance  of  the  acts  of  Fraser,  and  have 
become  his  copartners  in  complete  ignorance  of  his 
unprofessional  conduct ;  but  beyond  that,  we  could 
not  properly  go  without  indorsing  their  acts.  I  say 
that,  if  they  have  induced  Dr.  Breyfogle  and  other 
young  men  who  have  lately  come  to  join  them,  never 
telling  them,  or  informing  them  of  the  real  cause  of 
difference,  I  am  willing  that  any  or  all  of  these  gen- 
tlemen, who  publicly  recant  and  abjure  Fraser  and 
his  gang,  may,  if  they  are  qualified,  be  admitted  into 
this  Society ;  but  they  must  do  it  individually,  and 
upon  their  individual  merits,  and  give  a  proper  and  a 
good  reason  why  they  joined  that  society,  and  that 
they  joined  it  in  ignorance  of  the  fact  now  published 
to  the  world." 

Dr.  Albertson  said:  "  I  did  not  consider  that  we 
were  recognizing  that  society  when  I  made  the  mo- 
tion. But  we  have  a  communication  from  a  couple  of 
physicians,  one  a  physician  in  high  standing;  two 
letters  from  him,  and  on  matters  pertaining  to  Hom- 
oeopathy, pertaining  to  societies,  and  it  seemed  to- 
be  the  correct  thing  for  us  to  take  some  notice  of  it. 
That  is  why  I  made  the  motion  for  the  appointment 
of  a  committee  to  whom  papers  should  be  referred." 

Dr.  Geary  continued — "But  let  me  ask  whether 
these  notices  ought  to  be  taken  in  their  official  capa- 
city, or  as  individuals.  I  am  willing  that  Dr.  Brey- 
fogle's  letter  should  be  considered  in  respect  to  him, 
individually,  but  not  in  respect  to  him  as  a  member 
of  this  so-called  society.  I  am  perfectly  willing  that 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         145 

any  committee  should  be  appointed  to  investigate  that 
thing,  and  should  be  the  first  to  aid  it." 

Dr.  Davis  said  :  "  I  think  as  Dr.  Albertson  does,  in 
this  way:  It  would  be  well  enough  for  the  Society  to 
meet  a  committee,  not  as  members  of  another  society, 
but  as  physicians,  and  let  our  committee  report  the 
thing  back.  I  think  I  have  as  full  an  idea  of  this 
quarrel  as  any  gentleman  on  this  floor  at  present.  I 
investigated  the  whole  thing.  Dr.  Breyfogle  is  not 
the  innocent  man  he  might  be ;  he  knows  it  as  well 
as  I  do.  But,  then,  I  am  willing  to  hear  the  other 
side  of  the  house,  what  they  wish  to  say,  and  then  let 
us  decide ;  let  our  Society  take  what  action  they  desire 
to  in  the  matter." 

Dr.  Albertson  was  here  called  to  the  chair,  and 
Dr.  Selfridgesaid  :  "  I  have,  Mr.  President,  not  very 
much  to  say  on  this  subject.  I  look  upon  it  that  we 
have  nothing  from  that  society,  officially,  on  the  sub- 
ject at  all.  Neither  this  communication  from  Dr. 
Griswold,  or  the  letters  from  Dr.  Breyfogle  are  official. 
I  do  not  regard  them  as  such.  They  do  not  say,  them- 
.selves,  that  they  have  any  authority  at  all;  simply  they 
speak  as  individuals.  One  signs  himself  as  Record- 
ing Secretary,  but  he  does  not  say  that  he  was  directed 
to  write  any  such  communication ;  he  merely  says  that 
he  represents  sentiments.  Therefore  I  say,  finally, 
we  have  no  right  to  take  any  notice  of  this  subject  at 
all.  We  have  no  official  document  before  us,  and 
therefore  I  feel  that  we  would  be  perfectly  justified 
in  saying  nothing  about  it  at  all,  and  passing  it  over; 
but  lest  we  might  be  called  the  dogs  in  the  manger, 
who  would  do  nothing  themselves  or  let  any  body  else 
do  anything,  I  am  in  favor  of  doing  something.  I 
-am  in  favor  of  it,  not  that  we  have  anything  official, 


146  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

but  because  a  communication  is  received,  and  it  has 
been  read  here,  from  a  person  that  I  believe  is  a  gen- 
tleman, though  he  may  have  been,  and  perhaps  is, 
misled.  I  do  not  know  anything  about  that,  but  my 
sentiments  in  regard  to  union  are  stated  in  my  reply 
to  Dr.  Breyfogle ;  I  am  not  in  favor  of  a  union  with 
that  society  as  such.  Now,  I  say,  that  society  comes,. 
I  do  recognize  it  as  a  society,  and  we  are  bound  to  do 
that;  we  cannot  ignore  the  fact  ;  it  is  a  society,  and  is 
incorporated;  we  cannot  put  that  out  of  sight, or  not 
recognize  it.  It  is  a  society,  and  if  that  is  an  official 
communication  from  it  we  are  bound  to  receive  it  one 
way  or  another.  It  is  not  necessary,  however,  for  us 
to  recognize  that  as  a  society,  because  we  are  not 
called  upon  to  do'it,  but  it  does  seem  to  me  that,  out 
of  courtesy  to  one  gentleman,  at  least,  we  ought  to 
take  some  notice  of  the  matter,  and,  therefore,  I 
should  be  in  favor  of  the  appointment  of  a  commit- 
tee, as  stated  in  the  resolution,  to  which  this  whole 
matter  should  be  referred,  and  let  them  bring  in  a  re- 
port, and  let  it  be  thought  of;  let  it  be  considered 
with  as  much  wisdom  as  can  be  brought  to  bear  on 
the  matter,  so  that  what  we  say  shall  be  final;  what  we 
say  shall  be  in  the  spirit  of  charity  and  gentleman- 
liness  as  well.  I  do  not  believe  in  thus  scouting  the 
thing  entirely,  and  throwing  it  out,  as  if  every  body 
connected  with  that  society  were  scoundrels  or  scape- 
graces, or  any  thing  of  that  kind.  I  think  it  is  un- 
fortunate, perhaps,  that  there  are  some  individuals  in 
it  that,  perhaps,  have  disgraced  it,  but  all  should  not 
be  disgraced." 

Dr.  Davis  wished  to  add  just  one  word  more  :  "  It 
strikes  me  that  this  committee  ought  to  be  very  care- 
ful to  have  it  explicitly  stated  to  Dr.  Griswold  that 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.          147 

we  do  not  recognize  him  in  his  official  capacity,  be- 
cause, if  we  do,  he  will  bring  that  up,  for  I  know  him 
of  old.  I  have  had  connection  with  him,  and  the  first 
thing  he  will  do  will  be  to  say  that  he  sent  a  commu- 
nication to  us,  and  we  recognized  him  in  his  official 
capacity." 

Dr.  Selfridge  resumed  the  chair,  and  said :  "  I  believe 
it  is  perfectly  understood  that  we  do  not  recognize  that 
as  an  official  document.  The  question  is  as  to  the 
appointment  of.  a  committee  to  whom  the  whole  sub- 
ject-matter in  Dr.  Breyfogle's  letter  be  referred." 

The  question  being  called,  the  motion  was  put  and 
carried. 

The  President  appointed  as  the  committee  Drs. 
Albertson,  Gushing,  and  Pease. 

Dr.  Gushing  was  willing  to  serve  on  the  committee, 
if  it  can  be  done  in  the  daytime,  but  evenings  he 
could  not  do  it. 

Dr.  Pease  did  not  wish  to  have  any  thing  to  do 
with  it ;  he  had  enough  else  to  attend  to  already. 

The  President  then  appointed  Dr.  Davis  in  place  of 
Dr.  Pease. 

Dr.  Davis  said,  "  Perhaps  it  would  be  better  not  to 
appoint  me  on  that  committee,  for  that  society  does 
not  love  me  particularly  much,  and  I  am  certain  that 
I  do  not  love  them  at  all." 

The  President  replied  that  Dr.  Davis  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  them  at  all ;  it  was  with  our  com- 
mittee he  would  have  to  deal. 

Dr.  Hughson  said :  "  That  society  consider  that  Drs. 
Geary,  Albertson,  and  Pease  are  particularly  opposed 
to  them.  It  is  considered  by  them  that  these  three 
parties  are  opposing  spirits.  Now  would  it  not  be 
better  to  have  some  others  appointed? " 


148  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

Dr.  Davis  thought  it  better  to  appoint  some  neu- 
ttals;  he  was  not  neutral. 

Dr.  Geary  said:  "As  to  being  an  opposing  spirit,  I 
fiave  no  objections  whatever  in  the  matter.  I  am 
perfectly  willing,  and  want  that  to  be  distinctly  under- 
stood, as  I  am  deeper  in  this  matter  than  anyone  here 
by  my  public  record.  I  take  it  every  man  here  knows 
that  1  am  perfectly  willing  to  allow,  to-morrow,  every 
single  gentleman  who  has  become  unfortunately  con- 
nected with  that  society  without  knowing  Dr.  Eraser's 
public  record,  provided  he  is  otherwise  qualified,  to 
use  a  Latin  expression,  cateris  paribus,  to  become  a 
member  of  this  Association.  But  to  become  a  mem- 
ber of  any  society  in  which  Fraser  and  Hiller  the 
tlder,  or  the  other  Hiller  without  a  diploma,  or  any 
social  circle  in  which  they  are  admitted,  it  is  utterly 
impossible  that  it  should  be  so.  That  is  my  posi- 
tion ;  it  extends  that  far  and  no  farther." 

Dr.  Pease  wished  it  to  be  understood  that  his  oppo- 
sition was  to  wrong  and  wrong-doers,  and  not  to  the 
society  as  a  society. 

Dr.  Davis  moved  that  the  vote  be  reconsidered. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said  that  the  whole  matter  would 
then  have  to  be  reconsidered. 

Dr.  Ingerson  moved  that  the  President  be  added  to 
that  committee.  This  motion  was  put,  and  carried ; 
the  committee  then  consisting  of  Drs.  Albertson, 
Gushing,  Davis,  and  Selfridge. 

Dr.  SeFfridge  remarked  that  the  next  thing  in 
order  would  be  the  election  of  Directors,  under  the 
incorporation,  and  he  thought  it  well  to  recognize 
the  corporate  existence  of  the  old  society  by  elect- 
ing th/e  incumbent  Directors. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.         149 

It  was  then  voted  that  the  Society  proceed  to  the 
election  of  Directors,  and  it  was  further  voted  that 
the  Secretary  cast  the  ballot  for  the  re-election  o/lhe 
old  Board;  and  upon  the  ballot  being  cast  Drs.  Sel- 
fridge,  Gushing,  Ingerson,  Albertson,  and  Pease  were 
declared  elected. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Davis  the  Society  then  adjourned, 
to  meet  at  8  o'clock  P.  M. 

EVENING    SESSION. 

The  evening  session  was  held  at  the  parlors  of  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  and  there  were 
present  Drs.  Selfridge,  Albertson,  .Ingerson,  Geary 
Ballard,  Knapp,  Beakley,  Ledyard,  Davis,  Jenks,  PouJ~ 
son,  Hughson,  Cross,  Pease,  Arnold,  and  Cowles, 

Dr.  Albertson  presented  the  report  of  the  special 
committee  appointed  at  the  morning  session  to  con- 
sider Drs.  Griswold  and  Breyfogle's  communications. 

Dr.  Selfridge  read  the  committee's  report,  and  ia 
connection  therewith  the  letters  of  Drs.  Griswold  and 
Breyfogle,  as  a  part  of  the  report,  as  follows  : 

GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC  HOMOEOPATHIC  SOCIETY 
OF  THE  STATE  OF  CALIFORNIA: 

Your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject 
of  union,  beg  leave  to  report  that, 

WHEREAS,  The  following  letters  were  received  by  J, 
M.  Selfridge,  President  of  this  Society,  from  C.  W, 
Breyfogle,  to  wit : 

"SAN  JOSE,  Cal.,  April  8,  1876. 
DR.  SELFRIDGE,  Oakland,  Cal: 

My  Dear  Doctor : — I  write  you  this  morning  upon 
a  subject  which  is  very  near  my  heart.  I  have  sought 
by  every  legitimate  means  to  have  a  better  state  jo! 


15°  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

feeling  in  our  profession  upon  this  coast;  but,  until 
quite  lately,  I  had  thought  that  I  had  no  support  to- 
ward that  end,  except  Dr.  Barnes,  of  San  Diego.  I 
have  been  so  tired  of  the  useless  and  foolish  quarrels 
that  I  wrote  to  one  of  the  members  of  our  Society 
that  I  would  positively,  from  this  time  forward,  have 
nothing  whatever  to  do  with  any  movement  which 
had  its  basis  in  these  quarrels,  even  if  I  was  thereby 
compelled  to  isolate  myself  from  our  whole  profession. 
I  said  this  officially  and  unofficially.  You  are  a  Chris- 
tian man,  dear  Doctor,  and  can  the  better  appreciate 
my  feelings  upon  this  question.  The  condition  here 
is,  and  has  long  been,  most  deplorable.  Is  it  not  a 
sacred  duty  to  you  and  to  me  to  use  our  utmost  efforts 
to  make  an  arrficable  settlement  of  these  troubles  if 
possible  ?  I  believe  that  the  time  has  come  when  it 
is  possible'.  A  letter  from  Dr.  Griswold  last  night  in- 
forms me  that  it  has  already  been  favorably  discussed, 
and  that  you  have  been  prepared  for  a  communication 
from  me  upon  the  subject.  Allow  me  to  say,  before 
going  farther,  that,  much  as  I  have  been  tempted  to 
address  you  before  upon  the  matter,  I  have  only  been 
restrained  by  the  fact  that  my  position  in  the  Society 
(in  this  unfortunate  state  of  feeling)  would  have  caus- 
ed such  a  communication  to  have  a  traitorous  look, 
and  seriously  weaken  any  influence  I  might  have. 
You  will  therefore  appreciate  my  position  and  how 
rejoiced  I  am  that  I  can  now  address  you.  Our  So- 
ciety meets  on  the  evening  of  the  nth — next  Tues- 
day. Before  I  was  aware  of  my  not  being  alone  I 
determined  to  make  one  last  and  strong  effort  toward 
reconciliation,  in  my  address.  In  all  this  I  have  been 
aided  by  the  advice  of  Dr.  Barnes.  You  see,  there- 
fore, how  much  we  shall  be  prepared  to  discuss  the 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY. 

-question  of  unification.  Now  I  ask  you— officially  or 
unofficially,  as  you  may  see  best  to  term  it — to  call  an 
.informal  meeting  of  your  Society  for  the  same  (Tues- 
day) evening,  to  discuss  an  unification  upon  a  basis 
hereafter  proposed,  that  we  may  take  the  proper  steps 
toward  that  end  by  appointment  of  committees,  or  in 
any  other  manner  that  may  seem  best.  We  must  not 
forget  that  such  a  move  must  be  inaugurated  in  a 
.spirit  of  mutual  concession,  and  that  it  must  be  based 
upon  professional  duty  solely,  all  private  wrongs  be- 
ing cast  out  of  our  discussions.  Let  us  keep  in  view 
the  good  of  the  whole.  As  a  basis  for  such  unification 
I  propose  the  following — being  the  only  basis  yet  pro- 
posed, original  with  Dr.  Griswold,  and  which  /  most 
.heartily  indorse: 

First. — One  society  to  take  the  name  and  incorpo- 
ration of  the  other ;  the  other  to  take  the  Constitution 
and  By-laws  of  the  one. 

Second. — Members  of  either  society  unable  to  show 
diplomas  shall  resign,  but  may  be  admitted  into  the 
unified  organization  on  the  acquirement  of  a  certifi- 
cate from  a  State  Board  of  Examiners,  as  per  regula- 
tions of  accepted  Constitution  and  State  Law. 

Third. — Officers  of  the  Society  and  Board  of  Ex- 
aminers to  be  elected  from  the  former  members  of 
either  society,  in  equal  numbers. 

Fourth. — Records  of  both  societies  to  be  preserved 
in  the  archives  as  part  of  the  existence  of  the  unified 
.society. 

Fifth. — Conditions  of  unification  to  be  published  in 
the  journals,  so  that  neither  society  shall  seem  to  be 
absorbed  by  the  other. 

Sixth. —  The  name  of  the  unified  society  to  be 
determined  by  lot,  or  by  reference  to  two  or  three 


152  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

disinterested  members  of  the  (Allopathic)  profession! 
(I  do  not  like  the  word  Allopathic!) 

If  there  is  anything  further  you  may  wish  discussed,, 
please  inform  me  at  once ;  and  let  me  assure  you,  my 
dear  Doctor,  that  /,  personally,  shall  leave  no  stone 
unturned  for  the  accomplishment  of  this  end.  I  have 
no  thought  of  self,  and  deem  it  proper  to  say  to  you 
that  I  am  willing  to  take  the  very  back  seat,  so  this 
happy  end  can  be  reached.  If,  now,  you  will  call  such 
a  meeting,  please  telegraph  me  immediately,  "  yes."  If 
you  decline — and  I  hope  and  believe  you  will  not — 
please  telegraph  "  no."  I  should  be  much  gratified  to 
receive  a  letter  in  reply,  that  I  might  know  your  views- 
I  shall  leave  here  Tuesday  afternoon  for  San  Fran- 
cisco. Should  this  move  be  inaugurated,  I  should  feel 
it  an  honor  to  be  permitted  to  vote  for  it.  But  I  am 
going  East,  May  ist,  and  would  be  much  pleased  to 
have  the  measure  urged  a  little,  that  I  might  be  able 
to  take  part. 

I  shall  await  your  reply  with  much  impatience,  and. 
in  the  meantime,  and  always,  believe  me 

Yours  fraternally, 
C.  W.  BREYFOGLE." 

"SAN  JOSE,  April   15,  1876. 

MY  DEAR  DOCTOR: — Yours  of  yesterday  has  just 
reached  me,  and  I  hasten  to  reply,  as  I  feel  quite  anx- 
ious that  one  point  in  my  letter  should  be  explained 
at  the  earliest  moment.  You  say  you  have  nothing 
to  concede.  I  do  not  claim  that  you  have,  Doctor. 
I  intended  to  say  that  we  would  have  to  come  togeth- 
er in  a  charitable  spirit,  letting  all  the  personal  con- 
flicts of  the  past  be  forgiven  and  forgotten.  I  spoke 
thus  not  with  reference  to  our  societies,  but  as  indi- 


PACIFIC  HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         153, 

victuals.  Let  me  explain  more  fully  by  illustration- 
Dr.  A  has  done  me  a  very  grave  injury,  treated  me 
unprofessionally,  tried  to  injure  my  good  name,  or 
perhaps  even  gone  farther  than  this.  I  cannot  asso- 
ciate with  Dr.  A,  and  do  not  recognize  him  socially 
or  professionally.  I  am  a  member  of  a  medical  soci- 
ety, and  Dr.  A  applies  for  admission.  He  is  a  grad- 
uate, and  is  practicing  in  my  theory,  and  there  is  only 
my  own  injury  to  plead  against  him.  Shall  I  plead 
that  injury,  and  vote  against  admission,  or  concede  his 
right  to  admission,  foregoing  my  personal  animosity? 
I  claim  that  the  latter  is  the  only  right  course,  the 
other  being  in  the  highest  degree  unjust.  It  is  hard 
to  do  this,  I  grant,  but  we  have  to  do  many  hard 
things  in  this  world.  /  have  done  this  very  thing, 
and  I  feel  much  more  pride  in  the  knowledge  that  I 
thus  conquered  myself  than  in  any  feeling  of  satisfied 
revenge. 

I  grant  that  I  do  not  know  the  whole  history  of 
these  San  Francisco  troubles,  and  I  do  not  wish  to 
know  them.  What  little  I  have  heard — and  I  do  not 
refer  to  your  side — is  bad  enough,  God  knows.  I  only 
wish  to  do  my  part  to  provide  for  a  better  future,  and 
I  shall  hope  still,  discouraging  as  it  looks,  for  the  hap- 
py end.  I  beg  you  to  believe,  dear  Doctor,  that  in  this 
affair  I  am  acting  solely  from  principle,  not  caring  a 
picayune  for  men.  I  am  able  to  stand  alone,  and  will 
do  so  at  all  times  and  in  all  circumstances,  rather  than 
yield  one  iota  of  that  which  conscience  teaches  me  is 
right. 

I  appreciated  your  reasons  for  not  calling  a  meeting 
of  your  Society  before  you  wrote  them.  I  only  pray 
for  calm,  dispassionate  consideration  of  the  questioa 
when  you  meet.  I  told  one  of  your  members  that  I 


154  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE    • 

placed  myself  under  his  direction  in  being  willing  to 
obey  his  call  at  any  time  to  an  informal  meeting  of  a 
few,  to  talk  over  this  matter,  if  it  should  be  thought 
best  (I  have  to-day  decided  to  start  East  one  week 
sooner  than  I  originally  intended,  so  I  shall  not  be  at 
liberty  to  do  this  after  next  Friday.)  I  believe,  dear 
Doctor,  that  I  have  kept  clear  from  any  personal  ani- 
mosity in  these  difficulties,  and  I  hope  I  shall  be  able 
to  do  so  in  future.  I  know  that  I  have  the  very  kind- 
est feelings  toward  all  of  you,  and  your  kind  letter 
gives  me  much  pleasure.  Once  my  name  was  involv- 
ed, but  officially.  I  would  that  as  pleasant  feelings 
were  felt  by  all  of  us.  I,  too,  have  not  always  been 
treated  as  strict  professional  etiquette  demands ;  but 
I -am  charitable  enough  to  attribute  it  to  one  of  two 
motives — ignorance  or  avarice — so  I  simply  take  due 
•care  to  give  no  opportunity  for  a  repetition. 

I  shall  leave  for  my  home  in  the  East,  hoping  to 
liear  good  news  ere  my  return.  If  I  can  do  anything 
by  letter,  a  letter  to  me  here  will  be  forwarded.  I  sup- 
pose not,  but  deem  it  best  to  mention  it. 

With  thanks  again  for  your  kind  feeling  toward  me 
personally,  and  with  assurances  of  its  sincere  return, 
I  remain 

Yours  faithfully  and  fraternally, 

C.  W.  BREYFOGLE." 

And  whereas,  The  following  communication  has 
been  presented  to  this  Society,  signed  W.  N.  Gris- 
wold,  to  wit: 

""  To  THE   MEMBERS  OF  THE  PACIFIC   HOMOZOPATHIC 
SOCIETY  OF  THE  STATE  OF  CALIFORNIA  : 
Gentlemen — The  undersigned,  representing  the  pre- 
vailing sentiment  of  the  members  of  the  California 


PACIFIC* HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         15$ 

State  Medical  Society  of  Homoeopathic  Practition- 
ers, begs  leave  to  propose  the  union  of  the  Pacific  and 
California  societies,  on  some  basis  involving  mutual 
concessions. 

He  suggests  the  appointment  of  a  committee  of 
conference  on  the  part  of  the  Pacific  Society,  to  meet 
a  corresponding  committee,  to  be  appointed  by  the 
California  Society. 

He  requests,  also,  the  immediate  consideration  and 
disposal  of  this  proposition. 

The  California  Society  will  have  a  special  meeting, 
Friday  evening,  May  i2th,  to  transact  such  business 
as  may  come  before  it. 

Respectfully, 

W.  N.  GRISWOLD,  M.  D., 
Rec.  Sec.  Cal.  S.  M.  S.  of  H.  P. 

San  Francisco,  May  9,  1876." 

And  whereas,  Neither  of  these  communications  pre- 
tend to  be  official  in  their  character,  and  therefore 
have  no  authority; 

And  whereas,  The  society  with  which  these  gentle- 
men are  connected  has  not  acted  in  accordance  with 
the  spirit  foreshadowed  in  the  letters  of  Dr.  Breyfogle, 
viz.,  have  not  appointed  a  committee  of  conference,  as 
was  intimated  would  be  appointed,  your  committee 
would  therefore  recommend  the  adoption  of  the  fol- 
lowing resolution: 

Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  this  Society  be,  and 
is  hereby,  instructed  to  transmit  a  copy  of  this  report 
to  W.  N.  Griswold,  informing  him  of  the  readiness  of 
this  Society  to  appoint  a  committee  of  conference 


156  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE  • 

whenever  the  society  with  which  he  is  connected  shall 
have  appointed  a  similar  committee. 

f  J.  A.  ALBERTSON, 

r*         -ti.      )  I-  I-  GUSHING, 
Committee,^  ^  V   ^ 

'  }  G.  E.  DAVIS, 

[J.  M.  SELFRIDGE, 

Dr.  Geary  said :  "  There  is  only  one  difficulty  that 
may  occur  by-and-bye.  Suppose  they  appoint  a  com- 
mittee to  meet  you  gentlemen,  and  the  chairman  of 
the  committee  is  Eraser,  what  can  you  do  with  it  ?  " 

Dr.  Selfridge  replied:  "  I  will  risk  that." 

Dr.  Davis :  "  If  I  understand  it,  this  appointing  a 
committee  is  simply  a  preparatory  measure.  I  do  not 
understand  that  they  are  bound  to  take  any  action,, 
except  to  receive  the  communication  from  the  corre- 
sponding committee  of  the  other  society,  and  shall  then, 
report  to  this  Society  for  final  action — not  that  they 
are  empowered  to  receive  anything  themselves." 

Dr.  Selfridge  said :  "  We  have  not  received  a  com- 
munication from  the  other  society  at  all ;  these  are 
from  parties  as  individuals,  and  not  officially.  One 
signs  himself  as  secretary,  but  he  does  not  say  that  by 
resolution  he  was  directed  to  make  a  communication 
of  this  sort.  He  does  not  in  any  way  commit  his 
society.  I  would  call  it  a  dodge.  We  pledge  our- 
selves only  to  appoint  a  committee  if  they  do.  Let 
them  appoint  a  committee,  and  we  are  in  readiness  to- 
do  likewise." 

Dr.  Geary  said:  "  I  like  that  expression  'dodge.'  I 
I  am  sure  you  are  right  there  ;  I  always  speak  my 
mind."  [Laughter.] 

The  report  of  the  committee,  together  with  the  res- 
olution presented,  was  accepted  and  adopted  by  the 
Society  without  objection. 


PACIFIC  ^HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         157 

The  Secretary  presented  the  credentials  of-  Dr.  J. 
W.  Angell,  of  Calistoga,  and  proposed  him  for  mem- 
bership. 

Dr.  Selfridge  said  he  had  seen  Dr.  Angell's  diploma, 
and  it  was  dated  1844. 

The  Censors  reporting  favorably,  Dr.  Angell  was 
elected  a  member,  the  Secretary  by  direction  casting 
•the  vote  of  the  Society. 

The  President  then  appointed  the  bureaus,  as  fol- 
lows : 

Materia  Medica.  —  G.  E.  Davis,  M.  T.  Wilson 
<G.  H.  Jenks. 

Clinical  Medicine. — W.  A.  Hughson,  H.  Knapp, 
J.  M.  Selfridge. 

Obstetrics  and  Diseases  of  Women. — A.  Liliencrantz, 
AV.  E.  Ledyard,  L.  E.  Cross,  L.  A.  Ballard. 

Surgery,  General  and  Ophthalmic. — G.  M.  Pease, 
J.  A.  Albertson,  W.  E.  Ledyard. 

Anatomy,  Physiology,  and  Hygiene. — W.  A.  .Hugh- 
son,  G.  S.  Barrows,  J.  W.  Angell. 

Organization,  Registration,  and  Statistics. — H.  H. 
Ingerson,  J.  F.  Geary,  J.  J.  Cushing. 

Dr.  Jenks  said,  "  In  appointing  bureaus  I  think  the 
President  should  appoint  members  in  such  a  way  as 
to  bring  out  diversity  of  opinion.  There  are  mem- 
bers of  the  Society  known  to  be  what  might  be  called 
x'  High  Potency  men  "  and  "  Low  Potency  men,"  and 
some  that  do  not  confine  themselves  to  either.  All 
sides  ought  to  be  heard,  and  all  sides  ought  to  be 
respected.  I  would  be  sorry  to  find  fault  with  any 
man  on  the  question  of  potency.  I  say  we  ought  to 
bring  out  in  these  bureaus  a  diversity,  and  in  the  Bu- 
reau on  Materia  Medica  it  is  composed  of  three  men 
who  all  agree  on  the  question  of  potency." 


158  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

Dr.  Selfridge  replied,  "  I  knew  nothing  of  that  in 
making  the  selection." 

Dr.  Geary  said,  "  There  is  the  danger,  I  see.  We 
have  what  we  call  extreme  Hahnemann  or  '  High  Po- 
tency men,'  who  are  tied  to  these  high  potencies.  We 
have  to  guard  against  that.  I,  myself,  scarcely  know 
who  is  who ;  but  it  is  in  consultation  and  meeting 
each  other  and  aiding  each  other  that  the  great  dan- 
ger will  arise.  I  have  made  this  rule  for  my  own 
government:  If  I  call  in  a  '  High  Potency  man'  in 
consultation — and  I  am  as  ready  to  do  it  as  if  he  was 
'Low  Potency' — I  hear  what  he  has  to  say  about  the 
remedies;  maybe  he  can  suggest  better  remedies  than 
I  should,  but  I  require  that  he  shall  leave  me  to  give 
those,  high  or  low,  as  I  think  proper;  and  if  he  should 
call  me  in  consultation,  I  leave  him  equally  free.  I 
suggest  to  him  remedies  for  the  case,  and  then  leave 
him  perfectly  free  to  give  those,  high  or  low,  accord- 
ing to  his  own  ideas.  In  that  way  harmony  will  exist 
among  us.  '  I  am  as  ready  to  call  in  Brother  Pease, 
who  is  high,  as  I  am  to  call  in  Brother  Selfridge  or 
any  other  brother;  but  I  think  that  rule  ought  to  be 
kept  in  mind  by  us  all,  and  by  no  means,  if  possible, 
to  make  any  discrimination,  but  to  let  harmony  and 
good  sense  pervade  our  Society  from  this  day  forever. 
We  have  fighting  enough  outside,  but  inside  let  us  be 
harmonious." 

Dr.  Jenks  said,  "  I  indorse  that  view,  and  that  is 
the  course  I  have  followed  in  consultation  with  other 
physicians ;  when  a  difference  comes  up  in  regard  to 
potency,  I  leave  him  free  to  use  his  own  judgment.  I 
suggest  the  medicine,  and  he  uses  his  own  potency." 

The  next  thing  in  order  was  the  reading  of  papers,, 
and  Dr.  Pease  read  a  paper  communicated  by  Dr. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         159 

Ad.  Lippe,  of  Philadelphia,  on   "  The  Relation    of 
Homoeopathy  to  Pathology  and  Physiology." 

Dr.  Wilson  moved  that  the  paper  be  accepted,  with 
thanks. 

Dr.  Geary  said,  "  If  that  paper  is  to  indicate  the 
creed  of  the  Society,  I  beg  leave  to  say  that  we  do  not 
want  it  published  in  our  transactions." 

Dr.  Selfridge  replied,  "We  do  not  necessarily  in- 
dorse or  accept  any  man's  paper  or  take  it  as  our 
creed  ;  we  merely  get  his  views.  Variety  is  the  spice, 
of  life." 

Upon  being  put  to  vote,  Dr.   Lippe's  paper  was 
unanimously  accepted  with  the  thanks  of  the  Society. 
Dr.  Geary  said,  "  We  accept  it  with  thanks,  but  it 
does  not  compromise  us  to  his  principles." 

Dr.  Pease — "No,  sir!  no  more  than  we  are  com- 
promised by  the  remarks  of  Dr.  Geary."  [Laughter.] 
Dr.  Albertson  presented  and  read  a  paper  entitled* 
"  Some  Thoughts  on  the  Passage  of  Gravel  through 
the  Ureters." 

Dr.  Wilson  then  read  a  report  upon  cases  of  Inter- 
mittent Fever. 

Dr.  Selfridge  presented  and  read  two  papers;  one 
upon  "  Annealed  Gold  Wire  in  the  Treatment  of 
Fractured  Lower  Jaw,"  and  the  other,  a  "  Partial 
Proving  of  the  Astragalus  Menziesii." 

Dr.  Pease  read  a  short  article  on  "  Post-climacteric. 
Pregnancy." 

Dr.  Davis  said,  after  the  reading  of  the  last  paper,, 
that  he  had  known  a  lady  of  sixty-five  who  had  a  baby 
at  that  time. 

The  hour  being  late,  no  discussion  was  had  upon 
the  papers,  and  several  remaining  unread,  were  refer- 
red to  the  Committee  on  Publication. 
On  motion  the  Society  adjourned. 


THE    RELATION   OF    HOMCEOPATHY  TO 
PATHOLOGY  AND  PHYSIOLOGY. 

BY    DR.  AD.  LIPPE,  PHILADELPHIA. 


As  Homceopathicians,  our  therapeutics  must  be  in 
accordance  to  and  in  harmony  with  the  law  of  the 
similars.  That  this  law  may  be  properly  applied  we 
must  have  two  factors :  first,  the  symptoms  of  the 
sick;  second,  the  pathagenesis  of  the  drug  to  be 
applied.  In  order  that  we  may  obtain  the  totality  of 
symptoms,  we  are  to  examine  the  sick,  and  have  to 
avail  ourselves  of  all  the  aid  we  may  obtain  from  a 
knowledge  of  all  the  collateral  branches  of  the  medi- 
cal science ;  included  among  them  a  knowledge  of 
physiology  and  pathology.  As  far  as  that  knowledge 
goes  we  learn  first,  from  physiology,  how  the  healthy 
functions  of  the  body  are  performed,  and  in  what 
manner  physiology  has  sickened — i.  £.,  in  what  man- 
ner these  various  functions  of  the  organs  or  tissues  are 
disturbed,  and  are  not  properly  performed ;  and  path- 
ology, as  far  as  it  is  known,  teaches  us  the  history 
and  probable  cause  of  the  disease  we  have  to  treat. 
The  more  we  know,  or  is  known,  of  pathology,  the 
better  will  we  be  enabled  to  make  a  good  examination 
of  the  sick ;  the  better  will  we  be  enabled  to  classify 
and  properly  esteem  the  importance  and  value  of  the 
symptoms  we  have  elicited  ;  the  better  will  we  be  able 
to  know  what  symptoms  belong  to  the  disease  itself, 
are  generally  present,  and  what  symptoms  belong  to 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         l6l 

the  sick  individual,  thereby  becoming  the  most' char- 
acteristic symptoms  of  the  patient,  and  by  them  prin- 
cipally will  we  be  guided  in  our  therapeutics.  As 
Homceopathicians  we  individualize,  and  these  very 
.symptoms,  not  generally  or  not  necessarily  present  in 
the  form  of  disease  which  pathology  teaches  us  the 
-sick  is  suffering  from,  constitute  the  characteristic 
symptoms  of  the  case  coming  under  our  therapeutics, 
-and  to  be  most  prominently  considered  when  we 
-choose  the  most  similar  remedy  from  among  the 
proved  drugs,  and  on  record  under  their  pathogenesis  ; 
and  we  may  be  allowed  to  express  our  conviction  that 
.in  that  respect  pathology  is  only  of  a  negative  advan- 
tage to  us;  and  if  the  choosing  and  administering  of 
the  similar  remedy  were  all  the  healer  has  to  do,  then 
pathology  would  be  of  little  use  to  us — only  useful 
negatively.  The  true  healer  has  more  to  do  than  to 
merely  administer  the  truly  Homoeopathic  remedy. 
This  is  only  a  part  of  his  duty.  He  has  furthermore 
to  lay  down  a  general  regime  for  the  sick.  This  in- 
cludes diet,  air,  ventilation,  occupation,  and  residence, 
and  even  the  psychological  treatment  of  the  sick,  and 
without  a  knowledge  of  pathology,  this  further  duty 
cannot  be  well  performed.  We  will  now  endeavor  to 
illustrate  this  proposition,  and  take  an  extreme  case 
for  illustration.  Say  a  man  twenty -four  years  old 
suffers  from  fistula  in  ano,  which  under  Homoeopathic 
treatment  heals.  Probably  he  suffered  before  from  a 
cutaneous  disease — tetter — which  had  been  dried  up 
by  a  materialist.  This  tetter  does  not  reappear  after 
the  healing  of  the  fistula,  as  was  reasonably  to  be 
expected.  The  man  has  a  feeble  constitution,  and 
instead  of  the  tetter  reappearing,  he  begins  to  cough 
—  a  merely  slight,  hacking  cough.  This  narrow- 
n 


1 62  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

chested  man,  raised  in  a  confined  counting-room,, 
becomes  feebler;  the  most  carefully-chosen  remedies 
only  relieve  him  momentarily,  and  for  a  short  time. 
Pathology  teaches  us  that  there  will  be  a  develop- 
ment of  tubercles  in  the  lungs  before  long.  This 
patient  is  sent  during  several  succeeding  Winters  into- 
a,  for  him,  more  suitable  atmosphere,  where  he  can 
inhale  such  fresh  air  as  suits  his  constitution.  He  is 
made  to  quit  the  confined  counting-house,  and  live  in 
the  open  air.  Before  long  his  tetter  returns ;  his  lungs 
become  strong.  The  tetter  restored  did  yield  gradu- 
ally to  the  properly-chosen  similar  remedies,  and  the 
sick  man  is  permanently  cured.  This  is  not  a  prob- 
lematical case,  but  one  of  reality.  The  mere  admin- 
istration of  the  proper  drugs,  chosen  in  accordance 
with  the  law  of  the  similars,  without  the  proper  regime,, 
would  never  have  sufficed  to  cure  the  sick  man  ;  and 
without  a  knowledge  of  pathology,  such  a  regime 
would  not  have  been  ordered.  It  is  in  this  manner 
that  we  as  Homceopathicians  are  enabled  to  make 
all  the  various  collateral  branches  of  the  medical 
science  subservient  to  our  fundamental  principles 
of  cure.  As  to  the  simple  question  of  diet,  we  may 
at  times  immensely  profit  by  our  pathological  knowl- 
edge. And  here  is  another  powerful  illustration,  also- 
not  a  problematical  case ;  but  one  which  happened 
some  nine  months  ago. 

A  prominent  man  in  a  neighboring  city  was  ill  with 
abdominal  typhus.  I  was  summoned  to  see  him  on  the 
twentieth  day  of  his  illness,  during  which  he  was  most 
carefully  and  skillfully  treated.  The  most  distressing 
and  evil-foreboding  symptom  was  a  frequent  very  de- 
bilitating diarrhea,  which  was  worse  when  he  urinated 
and  passed  flatus.  Under  both  these  actions  the  con- 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         163 

tents  of  the  bowels,  consisting  of  brownish  fluid,  were 
expelled  involuntarily.  The  patient  had  taken,  and 
was  still  taking,  the  most  Homoeopathic  remedy — 
covering  all  his  symptoms — which  was  Sulphur ;  still 
his  condition  did  grow  worse  instead  of  better.  After 
further  consultation  it  was  ascertained  that  the  pa- 
tient had  been  ordered  beef  tea  and  mutton  broth  in 
quantities,  and  upon  the  examination  of  the  urine  it 
was  found  not  to  have  formed  the  famous  cloud  indi- 
cating the  time  for  the  administration  of  animal  food. 
It  was  now  agreed  to  continue  the  Sulphur  (high)  and 
feed  the  patient  on  grapes  (of  which  there  was  a  great 
abundance  in  his  grapery)  and  milk.  The  effect  of 
this  change  of  diet  was  marvelous.  The  diarrhea 
ceased  at  once,  and  the  famous  cloud  in  the  urine 
appearing  a  week  later,  the  patient  having  had  no 
discharge  from  the  bowels  for  five  days,  was  now  per- 
mitted to  take  animal  food,  had  no  more  medicine, 
and  made  a  complete  recovery.  Without  pathologi- 
cal knowledge,  and  merely  giving  the  similar  remedy, 
and  paying  no  attention  to  diet,  the  result  would  not 
have  been  so  good.  And  now,  having  illustrated  our 
opinion  of  the  usefulness  of  pathology  in  aiding  us — 
not  in  our  therapeutics,  strictly  speaking,  but  in  many 
cases  aiding  us  in  ordering  the  proper  regime — we 
most  solemnly  protest  against  a  modern  attempt  to 
base  our  therapeutics  on  our  pathological  knowledge. 
To  attempt  this  folly  is  in  controvertion,  is  diametri- 
cally opposed  to  the  teachings  of  Hahnemann.  To 
treat  merely  diseases  by  their  names ;  to  treat  sick  ptyys- 
iology,  and  find  the  similar  remedy  among  our  proved 
drugs  and  their  pathagenesis,  is  a — burlesque ;  and  to 
excuse  the  burlesque  because  the  remedies  adminis- 
tered had  been  triturated  or  potentized  only  makes  the 


1 64  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

burlesque  more  ridiculous.  But,  strange  to  say,  the  at- 
tempt to  put  the  physiological  or  pathological  livery  on 
the  Homoeopathic  school  is  made  by  many  so-called 
Homceopathists,  under  the  erroneous  belief  that  such 
•a  procedure  is  "  scientific?  As  a  school,  it  behooves  us 
to  discountenance  all  such  departures,  and  stand  firmly 
•on  our  principles.  Homoeopathy  emphatically  declares 
diseases  to  have  a  dynamic  origin;  Allopathy  declares 
that  diseases  consist  in  sick  physiology.  How  any  one 
<can  conceive  the  possibility  of  treating  dynamic  dis- 
eases otherwise  than  by  dynamic  remedies,  or  sick 
physiology  otherwise  than  by  crude  drugs  to  correct 
materially  such  material  changes,  has  yet  to  be  ex- 
plained ;  surely  there  is  no  possibility  of  a  sound,  log- 
ical therapeutic  which  admits  of  the  possibility  to  treat 
material  changes  with  dynamic  remedies.  The  Allo- 
pathic school,  or  Sick  Physiology,  will  no  more  be 
benefited  by  dynamic  remedies,  which  by  no  possible 
-sophistry  can  be  applied  under  the  law  of  the  similars, 
than  Homoeopathy,  with  its  dynamic  remedies,  can 
"Jbe  benefited  by  compelling  her  to  put  on  the  physi- 
ological livery,  and,  according  to  the  sick  physiology, 
•apply  her  remedies  under  the  law  of  similars  —  that 
vould  really  make  Homoeopathy  and  Allopathy  con- 
vertible terms  ;  and  who  would  desire  such  a  thing  ? 
If  it  were  really  in  the  reach  of  possibilities  to  treat 
sick  physiology  or  nosological  conditions,  the  proposi- 
tion to  make  the  conditions  the  basis  of  our  therapeu- 
tics, then  the  learned  men  of  our  school,  so  anxious 
to  parade  the  physiological  livery,  might  he  said  to 
be  the  progressive  medical  men.  The  possibility  does 
not  exist,  for  many  obvious  reasons.  The  inner  na- 
ture of  diseases  will  never  be  known  to  us — it  is,  al- 
ivays  has  been,  and,  furthermore,  always  will  be, a  con- 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         165 

jecture  and  nothing  else  ;  if  these  various  conjectures 
were  a  reality  and  true,  then  do  we  not  in  reality  find 
every  sick  individual  differently  affected,  his  own  indi-- 
viduality,  the  influence  of  the  seasons  and  climate, , 
change  and  variously  alter  the  ordinarily  well-known. 
forms  of  disease?     And  remedies  which,  at  one  sea- 
son or  in  one  locality,  often  sufficed   to  cure  many* 
cases  of  a  form  of  disease,  may  at  other  seasons  and 
in  other  localities  become  entirely  useless.     We  see 
that,  for  instance,  in  Diphtheria,  in  Scarlet  Fever,  etc. 
At  one  season  Diphtheria  often  yielded  in  the  eastern 
States  to  Apis  mel.,  in  New  York  to  Kali  bichr.,  in 
Philadelphia  to  Lachesis,  in  Belgium  to  Phosphor. 
As  Homceopathicians  we  must,  if  we  are  consistent,. 
if  we  expect  to  reap  the  results  which  we  are  promised, 
to  obtain  from  a  faithful  application  of  our  fundament- 
al principles,  we  must  treat  each  case  by  itself,  irre- 
spective of  the  name  of  the  disease  or  the  imaginary 
and  problematical  cause  of  the  disease — treat  the  to- 
tality of  symptoms  of  each  such  individual  case.    The 
scientific  Allopathic  school  involuntarily  gives  evidence 
of  this  very  proposition.    In  the  first  volume  of  Ziems- 
sen's  Cyclopaedia,  page  201,  under  Typhoid,  he  says  : 
"  No  light  has  as  yet  been  thrown  on  the  question  of 
why  Calomel  should  shorten  the  career  of  one  case 
and  not  of  another."     It  has  not  been  the  privilege  of 
the  learned  Professor  Liebermeister,  the  author  of  the 
sentence,  to  see  the  impossibility  of  treating  all  cases 
of  a  disease  alike.     In  the  same  volume  we  find  Pro- 
fessor Lebert  proclaiming  that  "certain  parasites  are 
present,  and  therefore  (what  a  logic ! )  are  the  cawse  of 
the  so-called  Relapsing  Fever ; "  but  he  says  :  "  It  has 
been  impossible  to  find  the  specific  to  kill  these  para- 
sites."   Here  are  the  sages  of  the  predominant  school 


1 66  TRANSACTIONS. 

of  medicine,  and  they  do  not  see  the  folly  of  their  way ; 
and  if  Lebert  could  kill  the  parasites,  would  that  cure 
the  sick?  Turning  our  backs  on  these  learned  men 
who  are  unwilling  to  accept  the  great,  marvelous  truths 
taught  by  Hahnemann,  we  become  but  the  better  con- 
vinced that  the  true  healer  must  not  go  out  of  the  way 
to  pick  up  a  few  physiological  or  pathological  crumbs 
by  the  wayside ;  but  it  becomes  him,  as  Dr.  Thomas 
Skinner  (Liverpool)  in  such  classical  language  express- 
es, to  prefer  the  Homoeopathy  of  Hahnemann  to  that 
of  any  interloper  or  would-be  improver  of  his  marvel- 
ous system,  and  prefer  to  seek  for  directions  how  to 
practice  it  first-hand  in  Hahnemann's  works,  where  it 
is,  thank  heaven,  still  to  be  found  in  its  pristine  purity. 
I  hope  to  have  shown,  that  while  every  healer  should 
have  3,  knowledge  of  physiology,  pathology,  and  all 
other  branches  of  the  medical  sciences,  he  must  not 
base  his  therapeutics  on  any  of  these  branches  of 
knowledge,  but  must  be  guided  by  the  teachings  of 
the  Master,  who  was  allowed  to  communicate  to  the 
world  a  great  system  of  the  healing  art,  for  the  bene- 
fit of  suffering  humanity. 


SOME  THOUGHTS  ON  THE  PASSAGE  OF 
GRAVEL   THROUGH    THE   URETERS. 


BY    J.  A.  ALBERTSON,    M.  D.,    SAN    FRANCISCO. 


Having  had  a  severe  personal  experience  in  such  a 
case,  I  have  been  led  to  reflect  upon  the  indications 
for  its  proper  treatment,  which  I  consider  mostly  pal- 
liative, for  the  following  reasons.     I  will  say  little  of 
the  distressing  symptoms  developed  in  severe  cases, 
as  convulsions,   collapse,  etc.,  but   simply   state  the 
generally-admitted  fact  that  the. passage  of  gravel  is 
•entirely  a  mechanical  operation,  being  the  effect  of  a 
disease,  the  "  disease  "  itself  being  the  deranged  con- 
dition of  the  organism  that  caused  the  formation  of 
the  gravel,  and  the  passage  of  it  an  effort  of  nature  to 
free  the  kidney  of  this  product  of  mal-secretion  by 
the  only  way  possible  —  through  the  ureter.     When 
from  any  cause  the  gravel  becomes  detached  from  its 
place  of  formation,  the  calices  of  the  kidney,  and  en- 
ters the  partially  funnel-shaped  mouth  of  the  ureter, 
the  sharp  points  and  angles  of  the  uric  acid  crystals 
pierce  the  mucous  membrane  of  the  canal  of  the  ure- 
ter, causing  excruciating  pain  and  irritating  its  mus- 
cular structure,  which,  acting  as  all  muscular  fiber 
does  when  irritated,  contracts.     Thus  the  contraction 
upon  the  gravel  increases  the  pain  and  obstructs  its 
passage,    while    the    constantly  -  accumulating    urine 
(which  is  the  real  moving  power)  presses  it  onward 
until  it  passes  from  the  ureter  into  the  bladder,  when 
most  of  the  symptoms  suddenly  cease. 


1 68  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

Such  being  the  case,  the  indications  for  treatment 
are:  ist.  To  prescribe  such  medicines  as  will  tend  to 
allay  the  irritability  and  relax  the  muscular  structure 
of  the  ureter.  2d.  To  increase  the  quantity  of  urine,, 
thereby  increasing  the  pressure  and  moving  the  gravel 
onward  fast  as  possible.  3d.  In  severe  cases,  to  give 
palliatives  to  lessen  the  pain,  ward  off  convulsions,  etc.,, 
for  which  the  anaesthetics  are  indicated  upon  the  same 
general  principles  as  in  obstetrics. 

Specific  Homoeopathic  medication  is  required  to  cor- 
rect the  abnormal  condition  of  the  system  that  caused 
the  formation  of  the  gravel,  and  also  to  remove  the 
local  and  constitutional  disturbance  that  may  remain; 
after  its  passage.  But,  to  my  mind,  it  is  just  as  absurd 
to  suppose  that  a  remedy,  however  well  selected  it 
may  be,  will  stop  the  pains  during  the  passage  of  the 
gravel,  and  let  the  case  progress,  as  it  would  be  to- 
suppose  that  a  Homoeopathic  remedy  would  stop  the- 
pains  of  labor  and  still  let  the  labor  go  on,  or  relieve- 
the  sufferings  of  a  surgical  operation  before  it  is  com- 
pleted. 

I  find  many  remedies  highly  applauded,  as  hav- 
ing done  remarkable  things  in  such  cases,  when  the 
fact  is,  that  -the  remedy  that  the  patient  happens  to 
be  taking  at  the  time  that  the  gravel  passes  from 
the  ureter  into  the  bladder  gets  the  credit  of  a  cure, 
when,  perhaps,  it  bears  no  more  relation  to  the  cure 
than  it  does  to  small-pox  or  ague.  Yet  it  is  put  on 
record  for  some  other  physician  to  experiment  with 
until  he  proves  its  worthlessness.  I  find  several  au- 
thorities to  support  the  above  views,  among  which 
Baehr  says  (vol.  i.f  p.  616):  "An  attack  of  renal  colic 
itself  is  most  likely  beyond  the  reach  of  strictly  med- 
ical treatment,  whatever  may  be  asserted  to  the  con- 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.        169. 

trary  by  many  practitioners.  The  calculus  (or  gravel) 
has  to  pass  through  the  ureter,  and  no  medicine  can 
hasten  its  passage.  Moreover,  it  is  impossible  to 
judge  of  the  effect  of  any  medicine,  because  we  cannot 
decide  a  priori  'now  soon  a  calculus  will  pass  if  no> 
medicines  are  employed." 


INTERMITTENT  FEVER. 


BY   M.  T.  WILSON,    M.  D.,    SAN    FRANCISCO. 


CASE  I. NATRUM    MUR. 

Miss  B.,  aet.  eighteen;  Irish;  contracted  Intermit- 
tent Fever  in  South  America,  and  was  treated  Allopathi- 
cally.  Soon  after  recovering  came  to  San  Francisco, 
when  the  chills  returned ;  aid  of  an  Allopathic  physi- 
cian was  obtained,  but  without  any  effect.  She  con- 
tinued under  the  care,  at  different  intervals,  of  seven 
or  eight  of  the  so-called  "regulars"  for  fifteen  months, 
at  the  expiration  of  which  time  I  was  called. 

Chill  commencing  in  the  stomach,  and  from  thence 
spreading  all  over  the  body;  vomiting  of  the  ingesta 
affords  partial  relief;  has  a  dull,  heavy  pain  in  the  left 
pectoral  region,  with  a  dry  cough  ;  cannot  walk  or  sit 
up  on  account  of  dizziness ;  profuse  cold  perspiration 
on  the  forehead  all  the  time ;  sweat  in  the  palm  of  the 
hands,  and  cold,  clammy  feet;  pulse  irregular;  tongue 
coated  with  a  dark-brown  coating;  mouth  dry;  short 
intervals  of  fever  in  the  afternoon;  one  cheek  flushed, 
and  the  other  pale  ;  no  appetite ;  bowels  constipated ; 
menses  regular ;  urine  natural. 

In  view  of  the  former  treatment,  I  gave  Nux.  v.  200 
in  water,  a  teaspoonful  once  every  hour.  The  next 
morning  I  found  my  patient  some  easier,  and  gave 
Calc.  c.  200  in  water,  once  every  two  hours  a  tea- 
spoonful,  and  continued  the  same  for  two  days,  up  to 
which  time  she  was  improving.  I  then  gave  Sacc. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         I? I 

lac.  in  the  same  manner  for  twenty-four  hours ;  then 
gave  one  powder  of  Calc.  c.  41  m.,  and  dismissed  the 
case,  feeling  very  much  elated  over  the  success  achiev- 
ed. Six  days  afterward  I  was  called  again,  and  found 
my  patient  suffering  with  a  chill,  commencing  10:30 
A.  M.,  lasting  for  a  short  time.  Fever  slight,  but  pro- 
fuse perspiration,  and  cold  feet ;  has  an  insatiable 
desire  for  salt,  and  wishes  her  food  very  salty ;  bowels 
constipated;  urine  natural;  no  appetite;  tongue  coated 
with  a  white  coating;  pulse  full  and  strong.  Gave 
Nux.  v.  200,  one  powder  on  the  tongue,  and  followed 
it  with  Natrum  m.  400,  a  teaspoonful  every  two  hours, 
and  continued  the  same  for  three  days.  Fourteen 
days  afterward  I  gave  on  the  tongue  one  dose  of  the 
15  c.  Seven  days  intervening,  when  the  lady  called 
at  my  office,  I  gave  her  on  the  tongue  one  powder  of 
the  100  m.,  and  dismissed  the  case  cured. 

CASE    II. ARSENICUM    ALBUM. 

Miss  B.,  act.  twenty-seven,  American.  Chill  com- 
mencing ii  A.  M.,  and  lasting  until  i  P.M.;  during  the 
chill,  thirst ;  drinks  little  and  often ;  soon  after  taking 
any  fluids  they  are  thrown  up,  and  followed 'by  a  par- 
oxysm of  muscular  contraction,  which  is  more  severe 
and  annoying  than  the  chills ;  pain  in  the  lower  lum- 
bar and  upper  dorsal  regions,  also  in  the  left  hypochon- 
drium ;  cold,  damp  feet ;  headache  worse  3  p.  M.  ;  pain 
more  severe  over  the  eyes  and  in  the  back  part  of  the 
head,  and  are  relieved  by  the  application  of  cold  water  ; 
cheeks  flushed,  skin  burning  hot ;  pulse  full  and  quick ; 
tongue  coated  with  a  brown  coating ;  bowels  consti- 
pated ;  urine  profuse,  and  of  a  dark  -  brown  color ; 
menses  retarded;  no  appetite;  gave  Ars.  200,  in  water, 
teaspoonful  once  every  hour.  Second  day. — No  chill, 


172  TRANSACTIONS. 

headache,  or  fever  ;  feet  warm  ;  continued  Ars.  as  be- 
fore. Third  day. — Chill,  12  M.,  lasting  until  2  p.  M., 
followed  with  a  burning  fever  which  lasted  for  three 
hours  ;  then  a  profuse  perspiration.  Continued  Ars. 
Fourth  day. —  Some  improvement' ;  coating  on  the 
tongue  cleaning  off;  pulse  regular;  bowels  moved; 
Ars.,  2  m.  Fifth  day. — Continued  to  improve ;  Ars., 
10  m.  Sixth  day. — No  chill ;  left  side  very  sore  and 
tender  to  pressure;  Ars.,  15  m. 
Dismissed  the  case  cured. 


ANNEALED  GOLD  WIRE  IN  THE  TREAT- 
MENT OF  FRACTURED  LOWER  JAW. 


BY   J.   M.  SELFRIDGE,  M.  D.,   OAKLAND,  CAL. 


In  this  brief  article  on  annealed  gold  wire  in  the 
treatment  of  fracture  of  the  lower  jaw  no  claim  to 
originality  is  made ;  but  as  the  apparatus  used  from 
time  immemorial  (which  usually  consists  of  a  firm 
strap  passed  under  the  chin,  and  fastened  by  straps 
and  counter-straps  over  and  around  the  head)  is  very 
inconvenient,  and  in  many  respects  objectionable,  it 
was  thought  best  on  this  occasion  to  present  this  as 
a  better  method. 

This  is  the  more  readily  done  because  it  has  not 
received  the  attention  merited  by  those  who  have 
written  on  the  subject,  and,  furthermore,  it  is  but 
proper  that  the  originator  of  this  idea  should  have 
the  credit  due  him,  even  though,  for  aught  the  writer 
knows,  he  may  be  dead.  The  objections  to  the  old 
method  are  its  cumbrousness,  its  liability  to  slip  and 
get  loose,  and  last,  but  not  least,  the  complete  immo- 
bility of  the  jaw;  thus  seriously  interfering  with 
speech  and  the  taking  of  food. 

But  the  method  here  recommended,  while  it  fulfills 
all  the  indications  required  in  the  treatment  of  any 
fracture  of  this  bone,  except  of  the  ramus,  allows  free 
use  of  the  jaw,  and  permits  the  patient  to  partake  of 
such  food  as  does  not  require  chewing,  and  to  use  the 
organs  of  speech  with  the  same  facility  as  if  no  acci- 
dent had  happened. 


174  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

My  attention  was  first  called  to  this  method  of 
treatment  in  the  fall  of  1852,  by  Dr.  Wright,  a  den- 
tist of  Sacramento  City.  He  had  just  set  a  fracture 
of  the  lower  jaw  for  a  man  who  had  received  a  blow 
on  the  side  of  the  face,  causing  a  fracture  through 
the  body  of  the  bone. 

The  patient  could  eat  and  talk  as  usual,  without 
producing  motion  at  the  seat  of  fracture.  The  cure 
was  all  that  could  be  desired.  The  doctor  assured 
me  he  had  treated  several  similar  cases  with  equally 
good  results. 

Dr.  H.,  a  dentist  now  in  Oakland,  recently  gave 
me  an  account  of  a  case  of  comminuted  fracture  of 
this  bone  which  he  saw  treated  by  this  method  in  Los 
Angeles,  by  a  dentist  of  that  city.  The  cure  was 
perfect.  This  method  is  well  represented  in  A,. 
Fig.  I. 

It  consists  of  a  very  fine  annealed  gold  wire,, 
passed  between  and  around  two  or  three  of  the  firm 
teeth,  on  either  side  of  the  seat  of  fracture,  and  fast- 
ened with  sufficient  firmness  to  hold  the  fragments 
closely  together ;  the  serrated  margins  being  usually 
sufficient  to  keep  the  ends  of  the  bone  from  slipping 
either  up  or  down. 

Should  they  incline  to  move,  however,  or  should  the 
wire  press  down  upon  the  gums,  either  difficulty  can 
be  easily  obviated  by  applying  an  inter-dental  splint,, 
made  of  gutta  percha,  along  the  "  dental  arcade  and 
across  the  line  of  fracture,"  over  which  the  wire 
should  be  firmly  fastened,  as  represented  at  D,  Fig.  II. 

This  method  of  treatment,  although  known  by  a 
few  for  the  last  twenty-four  years,  is  comparatively 
new  to  the  profession ;  for  it  is  not  mentioned  even 
in  so  late  a  work  as  the  last  edition  of  "  Fractures 


Fiy  L 


//t/tfrr/ff/  ft'ofrf  Hfff. 
fi'tr/fajtrrrStrr  /rtferrfr/rfrrf  S/rfrttf. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         175 

and  Dislocations,"  by  Hamilton.  He  mentions  it> 
however,  in  his  "  Principles  and  Practice  of  Surgery," 
a  more  recent  work ;  but  not  to  commend  it.  On  the 
contrary,  he  makes  three  objections  to  it.  His  first 
objection  is,  "  They  are  apt  to  slide  down  upon  the 
gums."  This,  as  I  have  already  shown,  is  easily  ob- 
viated by  using  the  inter-dental  splint.  His  second, 
is,  "  They  gradually  loosen  the  teeth."  This  objec- 
tion is  most  assuredly  inferential,  and  not  the  result 
of  practical  observation  ;  for  every  dentist  knows  that, 
in  tying  teeth  together,  for  the  purpose  of  drawing, 
one  into  line  with  the  rest,  they  have  to  repeat  the 
operation  very  frequently  before  the  tooth  can  be 
moved  from  its  abnormal  position.  But  even  if  what 
he  says  be  true — "  that  the  teeth  are  loosened  " — his 
objection  does  not  amount  to  anything ;  for  everybody 
knows  that  teeth  will  tighten  again  in  their  sockets 
when  knocked  completely  loose  by  blows  or  falls. 
Furthermore,  I  have  consulted  some  of  the  best  den- 
tists in  the  State,  who  think  this  point  of  the  doctor's 
is  not  well  taken. 

His  third  objection,  viz :  "And  acting  horizontally,, 
they  act  at  great  disadvantage,"  he  himself  answers, 
as  follows :  "  Dr.  Prout,  of  Brooklyn,  has  succeeded,, 
in  one  case  under  my  observation,  in  obviating  this 
last  objection,  by  fastening  the  wire  to  the  crown  of 
the  teeth,  and  securing  it  over  a  piece  of  gutta  per- 
cha  laid  along  the  top  of  the  dental  arcade,  and  across 
the  line  of  fracture." 

With  such  a  demonstration  before  him  of  the  pos- 
sibility of  treating  this  fracture  without  the  use  of 
the  cumbrous  and  inconvenient  apparatus  which  he 
recommends,  I  wonder  how  he  could  refrain  from 
commending  it  to  the  consideration  of  the  profession* 


1 76  TRANSACTIONS. 

It  seems  to  be  another  illustration  of  the  persistency 
with  which  even  great  men  cling  to  preconceived 
notions. 

Gentlemen,  the  simplicity  and  convenience  of  this 
apparatus  commends  itself  to  your  consideration,  and 
from  what  I  have  seen  I  must  heartily  indorse  it, 
hoping,  for  the  sake  of  humanity,  that,  should  either 
of  you  have  a  case  of  the  kind  in  your  practice,  you 
lay  aside  all  prejudice,  and  give  it  a  practical  test. 


PARTIAL  PROVING  OF  THE  ASTRAGA- 
LUS MENZIESII;  ALSO  CALLED  "MILK 
VETCH,"  "POP-PEA,"  "POMPOUS  PEA," 
AND  "RATTLE-WEED." 

• 

BY   J.    M.    SELFRIDGE,  M.  D.,  OAKLAND,  CAL. 


The  object  in  presenting  this  paper  is  to  call  the 
attention  of  the  profession  to  an  indigenous*  plant, 
about  which  but  little  is  known,  rather  than  the  pres- 
entation of  any  great  amount  of  positive  knowledge. 

From  the  brief  proving  made  upon  myself,  and 
still  more  from  its  poisonous  effects  upon  animals,  it 
would  seem  to  possess  valuable  therapeutic  proper- 
ties. With  the  hope  of  eliciting  an  exhaustive  prov- 
ing, I  wish  to  state  in  the  outset  that  I  will  furnish 
any  number  of  volunteers,  with  a  sufficient  quantity 
of  good  mother  tincture,  with  which  to  make  the 
trial. 

My  attention  was  first  called  to  this  plant  in  the 
Spring  of  1868,  by  persons  owning  cattle  in  Alameda 
county.  But  I  did  not  gain  any  definite  knowledge 
of  it,  or  of  its  effects,  until  several  months  later. 

This  was  obtained  from  a  chaplain  in  the  United 
States  Army,  who  had  been  previously  stationed  in 
the  southern  part  of  the  State. 

He  said :  "Animals,  after  eating  it,  became  appa- 
rently blind,  ran  against  anything  in  their  path,  fell 
over  rocks,  or  into  ditches ;  did  not  seem  to  know 


178  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

what  they  were  about ;  seemed  crazy,  and  after  a 
time  died."  Ranchmen  gave  much  the  same  account, 
but  called  it  the  "  blind  staggers." 

PROVING. 

Having  obtained  a  good  specimen  of  the  plant, 
June  1 7th,  1869,  at  4:30  P.  M.,  I  ate  some  of  the  green 
leaves.  They  were  very  bitter.  In  fifteen  minutes  I 
experienced  a  slight  burning  sensation  in  pharynx, 
oesophagus  and  stomach.  At  5  P.  M.  a  feeling  of  full- 
ness in  the  right  temple  and  superior  maxillary  bone ; 
also  slight  nausea,  accompanied  with  shivering  and 
chilliness  such  as  frequently  precedes  or  accompanies 
nausea;  5:20  experienced  occasional  attacks  of  dizzi- 
ness, with  fullness  of  the  head ;  5:45  felt  weak ;  arms 
felt  as  if  trembling;  6:30 — still  felt  weak,  with  a  sense 
of  emptiness  at  the  stomach ;  7  p.  M. — ate  a  light 
supper,  which  did  not  remove  the  weakness,  although 
the  feeling  of  emptiness  was  relieved.  Had  a  press- 
ing pain  in  both  temples,  which  lasted  until  nine 
o'clock;  7:30  —  felt  as  if  my  nerves  were  all  trem- 
bling; 9:15 — had  a  slight  pain  in  the  left  superior 
maxillary  bone,  followed  by  a  feeling  of  pressure, 
which  continued  but  a  minute  or  two;  9:20  —  aching 
in  the  right  superior  maxillary,  with  a  sense  of  press- 
ure in  both  bones;  also  slight  pain  in  the  masseter 
muscles.  Restless  sleep  after  midnight.  Frequently- 
disturbed  sleep,  with  dreams  of  quarreling.  Had  a 
stool  at  7:15  A.  M — an  unusual  hour;  loose,  like  diar- 
rhoea, with  burning  and  tenesmus  ;  8  A.M.  —  slight 
burning  at  anus,  recurring  occasionally;  9:15  —  occa- 
sional feeling  of  tenesmus. 

No  further  symptoms  were  observed  after  this  hour. 
There  being  an  increased  pressure  of  business,  the 
dose  was  not  repeated. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         179 

During  last  Winter  Dr.  A.  Kellogg  read  a  paper 
before  the  California  Academy  of  Sciences,  entitled 
"  California  and  Colorado  Loco  Poisons,"  which  being 
about  the  only  thing  of  the  kind  in  print  on  this  sub- 
ject, I  will,  with  your  permission,  quote  so  much  of 
it  as  pertains  to  the  matter  under  consideration. 

"  During  the  last  generation,  or  about  fifteen  years 
ago,  the  poisoning  of  horses,  cattle,  and  sheep,  by  the 
cattle-weed,  Pompous  Pea,  or  Pop-pea,  Menzie's  milk 
vetch  (Astragalus  Menziesii — Gray),  of  the  vicinity 
of  San  Francisco,  came  to  our  knowledge,  and  innu- 
merable instances  since,  reported  from  all  parts  of  the 
coast  where  it  abounds,  have  only  served  to  confirm 
these  observations.  How  long  it  has  been  known  to 
the  native  Californian  we  are  unable  to  say;  but  reit- 
erated experience  has  taught  sad  lessons  to  independ- 
ent observers  everywhere.  To  some,  however,  the 
cause  of  their  misfortunes  is  still  a  mystery.  We 
have  reason  to  know  that  there  are  also  other  similar 
causes  of  which  we  shall  treat  hereafter.  This  sub- 
ject has  been  frequently  brought  before  the  Academy, 
but  no  record  hitherto  appears  in  the  proceedings. 
This  and  some  allied  forms  have  been  figured  and 
published  here,  so  that  the  public  may  be  supposed 
to  be  somewhat  familiar  with  it.  The  plant  has  much 
the  appearance  of  bladder  senna.  As  no  chemical 
analysis  has  been  made,  nor  any  carefully  noted  exper- 
iments tried  on  animals,  all  we  know  is  the  serious 
results,  often  obscurely  and  imperfectly  reported  by 
the  farmer,  ranchero,  herder,  and  the  shepherd. 

"Horses  and  cattle  in  this  vicinity,  we  notice,  shun 
it  so  long  as  the  pasturage  is  good,  but  as  it  becomes 
bare,  and  hunger  impels,  they  bite  it  and  become  nar- 
cotized, or,  as  we  may  say,  intoxicated.  They  stagger 


l8o  TRANSACTIONS. 

and  are  unsteady  in  all  their  movements;  act  strangely 
and  stupidly,  and  seem  to  lose  their  good  horse-sense, 
or  common  brute  sagacity,  acting  like  fools ;  hence 
the  Mexican  name  ''loco  given  to  it.  At  length  they 
become  thinner,  and  cannot  be  restored  to  '  condi- 
tion.' They  get  to  like  the  weed  more  and  more, 
apparently  infatuated,  as  the  Sandwich  Islander  for 
his  ava  (Macropiper  methysticum  in  water),  or  the 
drunkard  for  his  bottle.  If  only  slightly  ' 'locoed"  they 
are  scarcely  fit  for  general  use,  because  so  unreliable 
in  perilous  paths,  or  emergencies,  acting  so  like  fools, 
to  the  shame  of  all  sensible  animals.  What  is  most 
remarkable  with  both  this  and  the  Colorado  '  loco  '  is 
the  permanence  of  the  impression,  often  lingering 
for  many  months,  or  even  years,  half  demented,  until 
at  length  they  die." 

*'  Death  often  supervenes  suddenly.  The  effect  is 
similar  with  horned  cattle  and  sheep.  This  rattle- 
weed  is  by  no  means  confined  to  damp  ground,  but 
thrives  equally  on  dry  hills,  in  all  soils.  It  has  a  tall 
and  leafy  stem  or  stems,  in  bunches,  from  a  common 
perennial  root ;  leaflets  many-paired  (twenty  or  more); 
stipules  at  the  base  of  leaves  trianguloid  membranous  ; 
flowers,  dirty,  pale  yellowish  or  whitish,  tinged  with 
red,  mostly  bent  forcibly  back ;  pods  inflated,  about 
two  inches  long,  and  thinly  membranous — indeed,  so 
bladder-like  that  boys  amuse  themselves  by  popping 
them  ;  hence  the  name  '  Pop-pea.' 


POST-CLIMACTERIC  PREGNANCY. 

BY    G.  M.  PEASE,  M.  D.,  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


Under  a  similar  title  I  read  an  article,  some  time 
since,  in  the  Medical  Investigator,  reported  by  Dr.  L. 
S.  Cole.  I  will  relate  a  case  of  a  similar  kind.  Mrs. 
R.,  a  fleshy  lady,  aged  forty-six  years,  supposed  her- 
self, a  year  or  two  ago,  past  the  climacteric,  but,  as 
she  had  a  slight  abdominal  enlargement  and  a  sense 
of  fluttering  in  the  abdomen,  she  consulted  her  family 
physician,  who  gave  her  such  treatment  as  he  deemed 
necessary.  The  lady  had  previously  given  birth  to 
two  children,  the  youngest  sixteen  years  ago.  On  the 
second  of  December  last  I  was  called  in  consultation 
upon  the  above-mentioned  patient ;  was  informed  that 
a  slight  hemorrhage  had  taken  place,  and  that  there 
existed,  during  the  preceding  twenty-four  hours,  an 
oozing  of  water  from  the  vagina.  It  was  supposed  to 
be  from  a  congestion  of  the  uterus,  or  caused  by  a 
polypus.  Upon  my  arrival  I  found  her  held  up  by 
two  ladies,  with  her  feet  out  of  bed,  and  complaining 
bitterly  of  spasmodic  pains  in  the  back,  with  consid- 
erable dyspnoea,  which  made  it  difficult  for  her  to  lie 
down.  Getting  her  into  bed,  however,  with  the  head 
raised,  I  noted  first  an  enlarged  abdomen,  with  the 
tumor  distinctly  felt  in  the  upper  part,  but  not  clearly 
made  out,  owing  to  the  thickness  of  the  abdominal 
wall.  With  a  stethoscope  a  careful  auscultation  was 
made  over  that  portion  which  would  be  likely  to  give 


1 82  TRANSACTIONS. 

any  sounds  from  the  uterus,  but  none  were  noticed. 
Proposing  then  a  digital  examination  per  vaginum, 
the  doctor  said  he  had  made  one,  but  could  not  reach 
the  os.  We  compared  fingers,  with  the  result  of  de- 
termining me  to  try  it. 

I  found  the  os  well  dilated  and  a  foetal  head  pre- 
senting. The  announcement  was  made  that  the  cause 
of  her  trouble  was  a  natural  one,  and  would  soon  be 
over.  But  we  feared  the  foetus  was  dead.  Deter- 
mined to  be  certain  upon  this  point,  I  put  my  ear 
again  over  the  abdomen,  and  far  over  on  the  right  side 
I  distinguished  the  foetal  pulsation,  and  counted  one 
hundred  and  forty -three  per  minute,  leading  one  to 
expect  the  coming  contribution  to  the  world's  inhab- 
itants to  be  of  the  female  sex. 

The  lady  was  delivered  that  night  of  an  eight-pound 
boy.  The  lady  said  he  must  have  been  a  quiet  young- 
ster, as  she  was  so  entirely  ignorant  of  his  existence. 
Under  such  circumstances  the  state  of  affairs  in  that 
house  may  be  imagined,  since  the  needed  trousseau 
for  so  distinguished  a  stranger  had  not  been  prepared. 
Mother  and  child  have  both  done  well,  although  the 
natural  food  was  not  of  sufficient  strength  to  properly 
nourish  the  child,  and  condensed  milk  was  substituted 
for  that  of  the  breast. 

This  leads  me  to  remark  upon  the  use  of  artificial 
food  for  infants.  In  a  majority  of  cases  I  have  found 
the  genuine  Swiss  condensed  milk,  or,  failing  to  get 
that,  the  Crescent  brand  of  American  make,  to  agree 
with  the  little  dependents  much  better  than  cow's 
milk,  even  the  vaunted  "one-cow's  milk,"  at  least  such 
as  is  supplied  in  this  city.  Variations  from  this  style 
of  food,  of  course,  have  to  be  made  to  meet  individual 
cases. 


CALIFORNIA  FOR  CONSUMPTIVES. 

BY    A.    D.    RISDON,    M.  D.,  SANTA    BARBARA,    CAL. 

I  would  like  to  say  a  few  words  about  consump- 
tives coming  to  California.  It  seems  to  be  the  pre- 
vailing idea  in  the  eastern  States  that  if  a  consump- 
tive can  only  get  to  California,  no  matter  how  far  ad- 
vanced the  disease  may  be,  he  will  get  well. 

I  have  been  here  in  Santa  Barbara  over  three  years, 
and  in  that  time  I  have  had  under  treatment  many 
of  that  class  of  invalids,  and  I  have  come  to  this 
conclusion :  that  any  and  all  persons  suffering  with 
tubercular  consumption  cannot  recover  on  or  near 
the  coast,  or  where  the  damp  sea  air  predominates ; 
and  it  is  only  a  question  of  time  as  to  the  termina- 
tion of  the  disease.  If  they  go  back  from  the  coast 
to  the  higher  altitudes  of  the  mountain  valleys,  my 
advice  to  such  cases  is  to  get  back  from  the  coast,  use 
no  stimulants  in  the  shape  of  liquors  whatever,  and 
live  on  the  best  the  land  affords,  and  out  of  doors  as 
much  as  possible;  for  the  shade  of  a  tree  is  far  pref- 
erable to  a  close  room,  except  in  wet  weather.  If 
they  are  too  weak  and  exhausted,  or  emaciated,  when 
they  get  here,  and  they  wish  me  to  treat  them,  I  give 
them  from  eight  to  twelve  drops  of  Churchill's  Hypo- 
phosphites  of  Lime  and  Soda,  to  be  taken  immediately 
after  the  morning  meal,  increasing  the  dose  two  drops 
every  morning  until  they  take  twenty-four  drops,  all 
the  time  watching  the  veins  and  blood-vessels  that 


184  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

they  become  not  too  full,  which  might  cause  haemop- 
tysis, if  the  blood-vessels  of  the  lungs  are  very  weak, 
or  have  become  too  much  exposed  by  ulceration.  In 
the  meantime  I  watch  the  case  closely,  giving  such 
remedies  as  are  indicated  by  the  most  prominent  or 
annoying  symptoms  present.  If,  at  the  end  of  a  week 
or  ten  days,  the  patient  seems  to  have  somewhat  re- 
covered from  the  effects  of  his  journey,  I  have  him 
take  two  drops  less  of  the  hypophosphites  each  morn- 
ing, until  the  dose  is  sixteen  drops,  and  continue  that 
for  some  time,  according  to  the  fullness  of  the  blood- 
vessels and  the  richness  of  the  blood,  then  recede 
with  the  dose  until  none  is  given,  or  continue  as  the 
symptoms  indicate.  I  give  my  patients  all  the  good, 
nourishing  food  they  want,  if  it  agrees  with  them,, 
but  no  stimulating  liquors  whatever.  I  never  have 
been,  and  I  hope  I  never  may  be,  guilty  of  putting 
any  of  my  fellow -beings  before  their  Maker  other 
than  in  their  sober,  natural  senses. 

Many  cases  of  consumption  (so-called),  caused  by 
pneumonia,  or  congestion  and  hemorrhage,  do  par- 
tially recover  here  in  this  climate,  if  properly  treated. 

I  do  protest  against  giving  stimulating  liquors  of 
any  kind,  not  even  the  celebrated  California  wines,  in 
such  cases. 

Good,  nourishing  food,  plenty  of  out-door  life  (not 
hard  labor),  with  such  Homoeopathic  remedies  as  may 
be  indicated,  will  be  all  that  is  necessary  to  bring 
them  out,  and  if  they  will  take  proper  care  of  them- 
selves, they  will  enjoy  this  life  many  years. 

For  haemoptysis,  or  hemorrhage  of  the  lungs,  I 
give  drop  doses  2  x  dilution  of  Arnica  and  Hamamelis> 
alternately,  every  five,  ten,  or  fifteen  minutes,  until  it 
seems  to  abate,  then  once  in  one,  two,  or  four  hours. 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.        185 

followed  by  China.  I  have  never  lost  a  case  of  that 
kind,  and  have  been  called  to  many  that  Allopaths 
had  given  up,  and  seemed  past  recovery,  some  of 
whom  are  to-day  living  witnesses,  not  of  my  skill,, 
but  that  Homoeopathic  treatment  saved  their  lives. 

CASE. 

Miss  M.  came  here  about  two  years  ago,  from 
Illinois,  by  direction  of  her  physician,  who  told  her 
she  had  consumption,  and  that  if  California  climate 
did  not  help  her  she  could  not  survive  many  months. 

She  called  on  me  to  prescribe  for  her  cough,  which 
annoyed  her  very  much  at  night,  so  much  that  she 
could  not  get  sufficient  rest.  She  complained  of  pain 
in  her  right  side  through  to  the  shoulder-blade,  pained 
her  most  when  she  sewed  steady  than  when  otherwise 
occupied.  Her  skin  and  the  eyes  grew  yellow,  show- 
ing that  the  liver  was  not  in  a  healthy  condition,  and 
she  was  troubled  with  a  sick-headache  about  every 
two  weeks.  Other  symptoms  with  the  above  indi- 
cated Leptandra  virg.  Gave  her  2  x.  dilution,  to  be 
taken  in  two -drop  doses  every  four  hours  for  three 
days,  unless  she  should  feel  better  before  that  time ; 
then  to  discontinue  the  medicine  and  report  to  me. 
She  came  back  on  the  fourth  day  looking  and  feeling 
much  better,  except  the  pain  in  her  side,  which  was^ 
very  troublesome.  I  told  her  I  did  not  think  her  lungs 
were  affected  in  any  manner,  and  asked  for  an  exami- 
nation, which  was  granted.  I. could  find  no  affection 
of  the  lungs  whatever ;  they  seemed  to  be  perfect. 

The  liver  was  somewhat  enlarged,  extending  far 
below  the  ribs,  and  very  tender,  and,  upon  pressing 
where  she  complained  of  the  greatest  pain,  it  was  very 
sore,  causing  her  to  shrink  from  my  hand.  With  that 


1 86  TRANSACTIONS. 

and  other  prominent  symptoms  I  diagnosed  an  abscess 
on  the  liver.  I  told  her  I  would  like  to  wait  a  few  days 
before  doing  anything  more,  and  await  the  action  of 
the  medicine  she  had  already  taken.  At  the  expira- 
tion of  ten  days  she  returned ;  said  she  felt  much 
better,  except  the  pain  and  soreness  in  the  side.  I 
proposed  to  treat  her  with  electricity,  to  which  she 
consented.  I  used  one  of  Jerome  Kidder's  six-current 
batteries,  the  A  D  current,  placing  the  positive  elec- 
trode over  the  painful  spot  over  the  chest,  and  the 
negative  right  opposite  on  the  back,  with  current  as 
strong  as  she  could  bear  for  five  minutes;  then  moved 
the  negative  over  the  back  and  side,  giving  the  cur- 
rent a  chance  to  pass  through  almost  every  part  of  the 
liver.  She  said  she  felt  relieved  after  the  first  treat- 
ment. I  continued  the  same  treatment  every  morn- 
ing, with  tonic  treatment  every  other  morning,  for 
two  weeks,  when  she  said  she  felt  almost  well  —  no 
nervousness,  no  cough,  no  headaches,  no  sleepless 
nights,  and — what  was  best  of  all — no  prospect  of  dy- 
ing of  consumption.  I  continued  the  same  treatment 
two  weeks  longer,  when  she  was  discharged  appa- 
rently sound  and  well,  able  to  sew  all  day  without 
pain  or  undue  fatigue.  I  received  a  letter  from  her 
a  short  time  ago,  in  which  she  says  she  is  as  well  and 
'healthy  as  she  ever  was — no  more  trouble  with  either 
lungs  or  liver. 


MEDICAL  USE  OF  COLORED  GLASS. 


BY    G.    M.    PEASE,  M.  D.,  SAN    FRANCISCO. 


The  following  extract  from  the  Gazette  des  Hospitaux 
is  the  first  of  the  kind  that  has  met  my  eye  outside 
of  our  own  ranks,  and  comes  nearly  two  years  after 
my  first  published  article  upon  the  subject,  and  about 
twelve  years  after  my  first  experiments. 

"Dr.  Ponza,  director  of  the  lunatic  asylum  at 
Alessandria,  Piedmont,  having  conceived  the  idea  that 
the  solar  rays  might  have  some  curative  power  in  dis- 
eases of  the  brain,  communicated  his  views  to  Father 
Secchi,  of  Rome,  who  replied  in  the  following  terms: 
'  The  idea  of  studying  the  disturbed  state  of  lunatics 
in  connection  with  magnetic  perturbations,  and  with 
the  colored,  especially  violet,  light  of  the  sun,  is  of 
remarkable  importance,  and  I  consider  it  well  worth 
being  cultivated.'  Such  light  is  easily  obtained  by 
filtering  the  solar  rays  through  glass  of  that  color. 
*  Violet,'  adds  Father  Secchi,  '  has  something  melan- 
choly and  depressive  about  it,  which,  physiologically, 
causes  low  spirits;  hence,  no  doubt,  poets  have  draped 
melancholy  in  violet  garments.  Perhaps  violet  light 
may  calm  the  nervous  excitement  of  unfortunate  ma- 
niacs.' He  then,  in  his  letter,  advises  Dr.  Ponza  to 
perform  his  experiments  in  rooms  the  walls  of  which 
are  painted  in  the  same  color  as  the  glass  panes  of 
the  windows,  which  should  be  as  numerous  as  possi- 
ble, in  order  to  favor  the  action  of  solar  light,  so 


1 88  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

that  it  may  be  admissible  at  any  hour  of  the  day.  The 
patients  should  pass  the  night  in  rooms  oriented  to 
the  east  and  the  south,  and  painted  and  glazed  as 
above.  Dr.  Ponza,  following  the  instructions  of  the 
learned  Jesuit,  prepared  several  rooms  in  the  manner 
described,  and  kept  several  patients  there  under  ob- 
servation. One  of  them,  affected  with  morbid  taci- 
turnity, became  gay  and  affable  after  three  hours'  stay 
in  a  red  chamber.  Another,  a  maniac  who  refused 
all  food,  asked  for  some  breakfast,  after  having  stayed 
twenty -four  hours  in  the  same  red  chamber.  In  a 
blue  one,  a  highly  excited  madman,  with  a  strait 
waistcoat  on,  was  kept  all  day.  An  hour  after  he 
appeared  much  calmer.  The  action  of  blue  light  is 
very  intense  on  the  optic  nerve,  and  seems  to  cause  a 
sort  of  oppression.  A  patient  was  made  to  pass  a 
night  in  a  violet  chamber.  On  the  following  day  he 
begged  Dr.  Ponza  to  send  him  home,  because  he  felt 
himself  cured ;  and,  indeed,  he  has  been  well  ever 
since.  Dr.  Ponza's  conclusions  from  his  experiments 
are  these :  '  The  violet  rays  are,  of  all  others,  those 
that  possess  the  most  intense  electro-chemical  power. 
The  red  light  is  also  very  rich  in  colorific  rays. 
Blue  light,  on  the  contrary,  is  quite  devoid  of  them, 
as  well  as  of  chemical  and  electric  ones.  Its  bene- 
ficent influence  is  hard  to  explain,  as  it  is  the  absolute 
negation  of  all  excitement.  It  succeeds  admirably 
in  calming  the  furious  excitement  of  maniacs.' ' 

It  is  pleasant  to  have  one's  theory  so  fully  proven 
as  is  demonstrated  by  this  extract.  It  would  be  inter- 
esting to  know  the  date  of  these  experiments,  that 
France  or  the  United  States  may  receive  the  honor 
of  priority  of  investigation. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         189 

It  may  be  remembered  that  in  a  former  article  I 
referred  to  the  use  of  colored  glass  for  nervous  dis- 
eases, but  I  did  not  speak  of  insanity  by  name ;  con- 
sequently Dr.  Ponza  has  added  a  word. 

From  whatever  source,  let  us  welcome  experiments 
and  investigations  upon  this  subject  of  glass  treat- 
ment. 

I  would  suggest  that  those  of  our  school  who  have 
insane  hospitals  under  their  charge  should  try  this 
simple  remedy,  and  if  successful  as  there  is  reason  to 
hope,  the  afflicted  will  greatly  rejoice. 


INSTRUMENTS  FOR  STAPHYLORRAPHY. 


BY  G.  M.  PEASE,  M.  D.,  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

It  is  not  my  intention  to  introduce  anything  very 
new,  but  to  call  attention  simply  to  a  couple  of  instru- 
ments which  I  had  made  for  me  about  eight  years 
ago,  and  which  may  not  have  been  seen  by  the  mem- 
bers of  this  Society.  The  necessity  for  them  was  felt 
in  consequence  of  a  few  operations  I  had  made  with- 
out them. 

Since  that  time  there  have  been  made,  by  several 
parties,  instruments  for  like  use,  but  none  of  them  to 
my  mind  so  universally  useful  as  these  two.  The 
knife  is  represented  by  the  following  cut : 


It  has  an  ebony  handle,  31  inches  long,  with  a  shaft 
5!  inches  in  length,  made  of  steel.  This  latter  is 
slightly  curved  laterally  until  within  i  *  inches  of  the 
end,  where  a  sharper  lateral  curve  and  the  blade  of 
the  knife  commences.  This  curve  is  a  little  sharper 
than  that  of  most  curved  scissors.  The  blade  is  upon 
the  convex  surface,  bevelled  from  the  center  toward 
the  edges,  while  the  convex  surface  is  flat.  The  blade 
in  its  general  shape  is  not  unlike  that  of  a  common 
lancet,  and,  perhaps,  might  be  better  understood  were 
we  to  suppose  a  long  handle  attached  to  a  lancet  and 
the  blade  bent  upon  its  flat  surface. 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         IQI 

The  old  "  Startin  "  or  "  Sabine  "  needle  had  a  sin- 
gle curve  which  was  found  to  be  too  long  when  desir- 
ing to  use  it  in  a  sharp  angle ;  it  did  very  well  for 
outside  work  with  plenty  of  room,  but  elsewhere  was 
almost  useless,  or  at  least  clumsy.  The  old  style  also 
had  no  method  for  propelling  the  wire,  save  by  push- 
ing with  the  fingers. 


Pease  s  Needle. 

In  the  handle  of  this  needle  is  a  milled  wheel, 
which  upon  pressure  pushes  the  wire  through  the 
canula.  The  curve  is  made  up  of  a  series  of  curves, 
and  when  the  wire  is  forced  through  it  has  a  spiral 
appearance,  giving  nearly  the  first  half  turn  required 
for  making  the  suture.  With  this  needle  it  is  only 
necessary  to  rotate  the  handle  on  its  own  axis  for 
ordinary  operations,  while  the  large  curve  of  the 
"  Startin  "  needle  can  be  used  if  necessary. 

For  a  full  explanation  concerning  both  the  knife 
and  the  needle,  I  would  refer  you  to  the  Transactions 
of  the  American  Institute  of  Homoeopathy,  for  the 
year  1871,  running  page  300. 


192  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

GRASS  VALLEY,  May  4,  1876. 

G.  M.  PEASE,  M.  D. — Dear  Sir :  In  compliance  with 
your  request  and  that  of  the  Medical  Society  you  so 
ably  represent,  I  give  you  a  synopsis  of  my  experience 
in  the  practice  of  Homoeopathy  for  the  past  sixteen 
years.  I  had,  prior  to  this,  under  Allopathic  treat- 
ment, lost  a  beloved  child,  and  was  myself  reduced  to 
hopeless  invalidism.  Although  I  still  endeavored  to 
pursue  my  calling  (that  of  teaching)  until  a  friend,  who 
had  suffered  similarly,  and  who,  for  the  sake  of  his 
family,  had  studied  Homoeopathy,  urged  me  to  com- 
mence investigating  for  myself  the  theory  and  practice 
of  our  school.  Well  satisfied  with  its  cardinal  truths, 
and  thoroughly  disgusted  with  the  so-called  heroic 
treatment  of  the  old  school,  I  commenced  the  study 
and  use  of  the  ten  principal  remedies  in  my  own  fam- 
ily, then  consisting  of  my  wife  and  three  children,  one 
of  whom  was  severely  attacked  with  diphtheria,  then 
epidemic  in  this  place.  I  treated  her  with  the  most 
appropriate  medicines  I  then  had,  i.  e.,  Bell.  Merc., 
and  Nitric  Acid.  Several  of  the  regulars  called  in 
and  pronounced  it  a  desperate  case,  and  spoke  harsh- 
ly to  me  for  trusting  to  my  little  pills,  but  scores  of 
children  were  dying  in  our  vicinity  of  the  disease,  and 
far  more  from  the  prostrating  effects  of  the  drugs  used 
by  the  doctors.  I  persisted  in  the  use  of  my  pellets, 
and  my  child  made  a  fine  recovery.  My  neighbors, 
seeing  the  result,  came  to  me  for  sugar-pills,  as  they 
called  them.  I  cheerfully  divided  with  them  my  little 
store.  In  my  family  I  had  an  opportunity,  by  reading 
and  observation,  to  familiarize  myself  with  the  symp- 
toms of  such  diseases  as  are  common  in  all  families. 
Successful  at  home  I  was  repeatedly  called  on  to  treat 
others,  which  I  did,  there  being  no  practitioner  of  our 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.         193 

school  in  the  county  at  the  time.  For  six  years  I 
studied  and  practiced  as  school  -  duties  and  feeble 
health  permitted,  free  of  charge  to  all.  My  system, 
overtaxed,  yielded  to  the  encroachments  of  disease. 
Pleurisy  and  typhoid  prostrated  me  for  three  months 
again.  Relying  again  upon  our  remedies — Bell.,  Rhus., 
Canth.,  Phos.,  and  Sulph. — I  recovered  without  medi- 
cinal diseases  being  left  in  my  system.  As  soon  as 
I  could  walk  I  was  urged  to  visit  three  cases  left 
by  their  physicians  to  die  —  one  of  brain-fever,  one 
pneumonia,  and  the  other  typhoid.  All  were  children, 
and  all  recovered  in  a  fortnight.  The  father  of  my 
typhoid  patient  came  to  my  school-room,  begging  me, 
with  tears,  to  accompany  him  to  his  home,  where  his 
little  girl,  an  only  child,  after  three  weeks'  illness,  was 
left  by  two  of  our  most  skillful  physicians  to  die.  I 
told  the  poor  man  I  was  no  physician ;  I  was  only  a 
teacher.  He  tarried  till  I  closed  school,  just  eleven 
years  and  one  week  ago,  for  a  May  party.  I  accom- 
panied him  to  his  home ;  found  the  child  struggling 
in  spasms ;  remained  with  them,  at  the  parents'  re- 
quest, five  da"ys,  and  left  my  patient  in  the  garden  with 
its  mother  picking  strawberries,  much  to  the  chagrin 
of  Allopaths.  Cases  multiplying,  I  was  obliged  to 
devote  all  my  time  to  the  study  of  such  works  as  were 
available,  my  only  Materia  Medica  being  the  U.  S. 
Dispensatory,  which  I  read — as  I  had  long  before  ac- 
customed myself  to  read  human  nature — backward. 
After  a  while,  learning  where  I  could  obtain  works  on 
the  subject,  I  procured  those  most  needed,  and,  for 
my  own  protection,  took  out  a  license  to  practice 
medicine,  which  was  annually  renewed  until  the  law 
made  it  necessary  no  longer  to  obtain  one.  I  make 
no  pretensions  to  surgery  or  obstetrics,  but  confine 

13 


194  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

myself  to  the  practice  of  medicine  only.  About  six 
years  ago,  while  very  busy  combating  typhoid  fever 
and  pneumonia,  then  epidemic,  I  attended  and  treated 
strictly  Homoeopathically,  during  the  first  months  of 
1868,  two  hundred  and  forty-three  cases,  including 
both  sexes  and  all  ages,  from  three  months  to  eighty 
years.  On  my  way  to  meet  another  case  I  was  strick- 
en down  with  paralysis.  This  confined  me  to  my 
office  and  home  another  quarter  of  a  year ;  but  by  and 
under  the  use  of  Cuprum  met.  12,  and  200.  I  again 
rallied  and  resumed  out-of-door  work.  Twenty-three 
years  ago,  under  Allopathic  treatment  (by  four  of  their 
graduates  and  diplomatic  corps)  for  typhoid  fever,  I 
was  left  a  mere  skeleton  in  body,  demented  in  intel- 
lect, and  paralyzed,  blind,  deaf  and  dumb.  Then  it 
was  that  the  heroism  of  my  good  wife  discovered  itself, 
and  with  that  perseverance  which  characterized  the 
true  wife,  she  comprehended  the  glorious  axiom : 
" Die  milde  Mac/if  ist gross"  Under  her  kindly  assi- 
duities and  mild  medicines,  with  plenty  of  cold  water 
and  suitable  nourishment,  I  recovered ;  commenced 
teaching  in  our  public  schools,  and  was  thus  engaged 
up  to  my  commencing  the  study  and  practice  of  Ho- 
moeopathy. 

My  library  is  as  large  as  my  means  will  allow  me 
to  procure.  I  endeavor  to  read  and  study  as  time 
and  strength  permit.  After  all  the  pleasure  and  profit 
I  derive  in  perusing  our  magazines  and  in  reviewing 
Gray,  Virchow,  Draper,  and  consulting  Hunt  and 
Marcy,  Hull,  Hartman,  etc.,  yet  my  main  dependence 
in  treating  the  sick  is  an  accurate  knowledge  of  th« 
symptoms  of  my  patient,  and  a  thorough  acquaintance 
with  my  Materia  Medica.  These,  my  very  dear  sir, 
with  the  blessing  of  God,  on  whom  alone  I  depend 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL   SOCIETY.        195 

for  strength  and  wisdom,  have  guided  me  in  the  past. 

*  *  *  *  I  fear  I  have  wearied  you.  A  man 
of  my  age — fifty-five — loves  to  talk,  and  a  paralytic's 
story  is  never  complete.  Homoeopathy  is  feebly  rep- 
resented in  this  county,  and  especially  in  this  com- 
munity, nevertheless  commands  the  respect  of  the 
other  school ;  and  among  my  very  warmest  friends  are 
some  of  its  most  skillful  surgeons  and  physicians,  who 
tender  me  any  assistance  in  their  power  to  bestow, 
and,  when  disabled,  have  been  first  at  my  bedside  to 
render  any  act  needed. 

As  to  Clinical  reports,  I  know  not  where  to  begin. 
I  might  speak  of  Paralysis  caused  and  cured  by  Aco- 
nite ;  also,  of  Sciatica,  a  most  desperate  case  that  has 
baffled  the  skill  of  physicians  East,  and  in  your  city, 
had  also  proved  impervious  to  the  famous  mud-baths 
and  mineral-springs  of  our  State;  this  has  yielded  to 
Aconite  3  x  in  drop  doses,  and  the  Aconite  salve 
applied  externally. 

A  boy  six  years  old  had  Sciatica  so  severely  that 
there  was  no  sleep  by  night  nor  rest  by  day.  Allo- 
paths had  the  child  on  the  rack  to  stretch  the  shrunk- 
en limb  several  times,  all  a  failure ;  cured  by  i  x  of 
Aconite  and  salve  used  as  above.  A  chronic  case 
of  Neuralgia  on  the  left  side  of  face  and  head  cured 
by  Aconite  1000  six  globules  in  water.  Time  and 
strength  would  fail  me  to  speak  of  Prolapsus  Uteri 
cured  by  Lillium  Tig.;  of  Tinea  capitis,  by  Phylo- 
lacca ;  of  Diphtheria,  involving  the  Tonsils  and  caus- 
ing oedema  of  the  Glottis ;  a  number  of  cases  cured 
by  a  few  grain-doses  of  Carb.  Zotate  Ammonia.  I 
have  removed  a  Polypus,  size  of  Bartlett  pear,  from 
the  uterus  of  a  lady  in  her  thirty-fifth  year,  by  the 
alternate  use  of  Cactus  6  and  Carb.  Z.  Am.  3. 


196  TRANSACTIONS. 

Hemorrhage  ceased  under  China  and  Secale.  Patient 
is  in  better  health  than  for  years  previous.  But  I 
must  close  this  or  it  may  not  reach  you  in  time  to  be 
of  any  service.  During  the  eleven  years  of  practice 
I  have  had  (except  now  and  then  one  of  our  school 
passing  through,)  no  one  to  consult  with  or  speak 
to,  but  by  observing  all  symptoms  and  studying  and 
praying  too.  I  am  still  alive  and  busy. 

My  list  of  applicants  for  Homoeopathic  treatment 
has,  in  the  eleven  years,  reached  nearly  seven  thou- 
sand. I  have  lost  by  death,  solely  under  my  charge, 
twelve ;  by  change  of  treatment,  twenty  -  five.  My 
health  does  not  permit  me  to  visit  the  sick  in  the 
country.  The  people  understand  this,  and  bring  their 
sick  or  their  symptoms,  if  they  wish  Homoeopathic 
treatment.  ******  ***  *** 

Hoping  to  hear  from  you  soon,  I  am  very  respect- 
fully yours  for  the  relief  of  humanity, 

ABEL  DOBSON. 


PROVINGS  OF  ERYODICTYON  GLUTIN- 
OSUM.  "YERBA  SANTA." 


Fred.  E.  Brooks,  medical  student,  age  24. — Nerv- 
ous, bilious  temperament ;  dark  hair  and  eyes ;  hab- 
its exceedingly  temperate,  using  neither  tea  nor  coffee, 
whiskey  nor  tobacco. 

June  nth,  at  4P.M. — Commenced  the  following 
proving  of  Yerba  Santa  tinct.,  taking  for  the  first  few 
days  ten  drops  of  the  mother  tincture  every  two 
hours,  from  6  A.  M.  to  10  P.  M.  No  perceptible  symp- 
toms manifest  until 

1 4th,  6  P.  M. — Rheumatic  pain  in  right  calf. 

1 5th,  A.  M. — 6  (10  gtts.),  8  (10  gtts.),  sharp  pain  in 
right  lung  in  front  near  mammary,  occurring  at  short 
intervals,  or  upon  sudden  change  of  position  during 
a  period  of  three  quarters  of  an  hour;  10  (10  gtts.), 
12  (10  gtts.);  2  p.  M. — (10  gtts.)  repetition  of  pain  in 
right  lung  front. 

1 6th,  12  M. — (10  gtts.),  head  heavy  and  dull — dizzi- 
ness continuing  until  3  p.  M.  (three  hours) ;  2  p.  M. — 
(10  gtts.),  4  (10  gtts.),  flushed  face  lasting  one  hour,  6 
(10  gtts.),  8  (10  gtts.),  sneezing ;  85  coryza;  ran  a  few 
blocks  to  a  fire  and  immediately  became  sick  at  the 
stomach  ;  9  (10  gtts.),  deathly  sickness  at  the  stomach 
until  10  (10  gtts.),  heavy  pain  in  back  of  head,  for 
half  an  hour,  as  if  occiput  was  being  pressed  out. 

1 7th — Foul  mouth  upon  rising  in  morning;  6  A.  M. 
— (10  gtts.),  coryza;  8  (10  gtts.),  coryza  with  more  or 
less  dizziness  continually ;  10  (10  gtts.),  coryza,  sneez- 


198  TRANSACTIONS    OF   THE 

ing;  12  (10  gtts.),  coryza  continuous,  a  permanent 
symptom;  3  p.  M. — (10  gtts.),  increased  coryza  ;  4  (10 
gtts.),  face  flushed  and  burning  (especially  cheeks) ; 
pain  in  back  of  head,  coryza ;  6  ( 10  gtts.),  intense  pain, 
dull  and  heavy,  in  back  of  head  and  over  eyes,  aggra- 
vated coryza  with  all  its  peculiar  symptoms,  sneezing, 
etc.;  10  (10  gtts.),  sickness  at  stomach  and  pain  in 
head,  hardly  any  coryza;  12  (10  gtts.). 

1 8th,  6  A.  M. — Feel  sick  all  over,  little  coryza;  8 
(10  gtts.),  10  (10  gtts.),  slight  pain  in  head,  no  coryza 
in  middle  of  the  day;  12  (10  gtts.) ;  4  P.  M. — (10  gtts), 
no  perceptible  effect;  6  (10  gtts.). 

I9th,  6  A.  M. — (10  gtts.),  headache;  8  (10  gtts.), 
catarrhal  discharge,  yellowish  green  color ;  2  p.  M. — 
(10  gtts.),  3  (10  gtts.),  5  (10  gtts.),  6  (10  gtts.),  no  per- 
ceptible effect. 

2Oth — Commenced  increasing  the  dose ;  9  A.  M. 
(15  gtts.),  10  (20  gtts.);  i  P.  M.— (40  gtts.),  3  (50  gtts.), 
4  (5°  gtts.),  9  (60  gtts.),  slight  fluttering  at  intervals  at 
bottom  of  testicles  ;  great  appetite. 

2ist,  9  A.  M. — (70  gtts.),  n  (70  gtts.);  2  P.M. — (70 
gtts.),  6  (70  gtts.),  8  (70  gtts.) 

22d,  10  A.  M. — (70  gtts.),  fluttering  for  ten  minutes 
in  testes;  12  M.,  4.  p.  M.,  6,  8,  (70  gtts.  each). 

23d,  7  A.  M.,  12  and  10  (70  gtts.  each);  10  A.  M., 
slight  fever  for  15  minutes,  cheeks  flushed  and  burn- 
ing, slight  dizziness ;  2  P.  M. — (70  gtts.),  4  (70  gtts.) 
At  5,  fever  commenced  again  and  higher,  face  flushed, 
sense  of  pressure  on  head,  especially  back  part ;  6  p.  M. 
— (100  gtts.),  great  nausea  and  heavy  sickness. 

24th — Headache;  7  A.  M.  (150  gtts.),  2  p.  M. — (160 
gtts.),  4  (170  gtts.),  6  (200  gtts.),  at  10,  heaviness  in 
head,  sense  of  pressure  outward  on  all  sides,  greatest 
at  cerebellum  upward  12  (220  gtts.). 


PACIFIC    HOMCEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCI1TY.        199 

25th,  7  A.  M. — (250  gtts.),  at  8,  ache  in  base  of  cran- 
ium; sharp  pain  in  right  ear  at  intervals  or  upon  sud- 
denly changing  position  of  head  from  right  to  left, 
never  before  having  had  headache  or  earache  ;  9  (300 
gtts.),  pains  in  right  ear  more  frequent;  pains  in 
right  ear  more  frequent  still,  somewhat  spasmodic  ; 
1 1  (300  gtts.),  .pains  in  right  ear  continue  till  5  p.  M. 
and  at  6  (325  gtts.),  shooting  pains,  after  changing  to 
just  below  external  ear,  removed  to  just  above  and 
back  of  it.  At  intervals  of  one  and  two  minutes 
shooting  and  quite  painful.  Also  noticed  quivering 
in  little  finger  of  left  hand,  also  constant  twitching  of 
abductor  muscle  of  wrist  when  the  arm  was  flexed 
and  lying  on  desk  as  in  the  act  of  writing ;  8  (400 
gtts.),  shooting  pains  back  of  and  above  external  ear 
become  more  frequent  and  more  painful  (not  felt 
through  the  night),  no  pain  in  the  morning  following. 

26th,  7  A.  M. — (500  gtts.),  9  (600  gtts.),  (no  effect  per- 
ceptible) ;  2  P.  M. — (600  gtts.),  6  (600  gtts.),  sense  of  in- 
toxication ;  slight  spasmodic  symptoms. 

27th — Cessation  of  medicine. 

28th,  10  A.  M. — (600  gtts.),  immediate  dizziness  like 
slight  dull  intoxication ;  again  dull  pain  in  right  lung 
front ;  1 1  (600  gtts.) ;  i  P.  M. — (600  gtts.),  3  (600  gtts.), 
5  (600  gtts.),  wheezing  voice,  at  5:30  distinct  throbbing 
in  head;  quite  strong  asthmatic  symptoms;  discon- 
tinued the  drug  and  symptoms  vanished  directly. 

OBSERVATIONS. — It  is  evident  that  the  power  to  pro- 
duce coryza  is  one  of  the  marked  characteristics  of 
this  drug,  since  the  coryza  produced  in  the  proving 
was  so  violent.  All  the  other  symptoms  were  quife 
strongly  marked,  though  I  should  not  fear  death  from 
such  an  asthma. 


2OO  TRANSACTIONS. 

Mrs.  A.,  aged  42.  Three  drops  of  the  tincture  in 
half  a  glass  of  water,  one  teaspoonful  every  two  hours 
—within  three  hours  she  complained  of  burning  sen- 
sation in  fauces  and  throat  and  the  next  morning  was 
covered  with  a  scarlet  rash,  which  lasted  four  or  five 
days.  After  four  or  five  weeks  the  medicine  was  again 
taken  in  the  same  way  and  with  the  same  results — it 
was  continued  during  twelve  hours  each  time.  She 
had  been  poisoned  with  Rhus  Tox.  some  six  months 
previously. 

G.  M.  P.,  troubled  with  Asthma,  took  for  a  time 
three  or  four  drops  of  the  tincture  from  two  to  three 
times  daily  for  a  short  time,  with  some  apparent  good 
results ;  at  least  the  symptoms  improved,  and  after- 
ward, when  upon  retiring  felt  a  spasm  coming  on,  took 
a  few  drops.  At  first  the  left  testicle  felt  tender  and 
heavy,  so  tender  in  fact  as  to  be  almost  painful.  This 
symptom  lasted  during  two  or  three  days.  A  second 
steady  use  of  the  drug  caused  the  same  feeling  in  the 
testicle. 


ABSCESS  OF   LIVER  AND  SPLEEN. 

BY   G.    M.    PEASE,  M.  D.,  SAN    FRANCISCO. 
CASE. 

Mrs.  M.  Age  about  forty.  For  several  Winters 
was  considerably  troubled  with  asthma,  and  during 
the  Winter  of  1873-74  was  more  troubled  than  usual, 
especially  whenever  she  took  cold.  For  years  she 
had  been  troubled  with  "  spleen  ache."  In  Novem- 
ber, 1873,  she  was  suffering  with  pain  in  the  whole 
left  side,  and  had  enlargement  of  the  spleen.  In 
February,  1874,  she  went  to  bed  one  night,  no  worse 
than  usual,  and  awakened  with  a  severe  chill  and 
spasm,  commencing  with  pain  through  the  middle  of 
the  sternum,  through  to  the  back,  also  with  a  sensa- 
tion as  of  a  girth,  tightly  drawn  from  liver  to  spleen, 
constantly  tightening  until  the  chill  went  off.  She 
had  symptoms  of  indigestion.  At  first  she  had  the 
chills  every  day,  or  every  other  day,  and  then  she 
would  be  without  them  for  four  or  five  days,  thinking 
she  was  getting  well,  but  only  to  be  disappointed. 
She  had  also,  after  a  time,  during  the  chills,  a  sensa- 
tion as  if  cords  were  tied  around  the  nipples,  and 
some  one  pulling  on  them  with  jerks.  Skin  and  eyes 
were  yellow  from  the  time  of  the  first  chill.  Urine 
very  dark  and  thick  all  the  time,  with  yellow  sedi- 
ment. Constipation,  with  bleeding  piles.  Just  be- 
fore each  chill  the  urine  changed  and  became  thin 
and  nearly  clear,  and  was  copious,  while  at  other 

14 


2O2  TRANSACTIONS    OF    THE 

times  it  was  scanty.  The  chills  lasted,  from  four  to 
eight  hours,  the  fever  about  the  same  length  of  time, 
the  sweat  accompanying  both  the  chill  and  fever,  but 
most  during  the  chill. 

She  had  taken  calomel,  jalap,  quinine,  comp.  cathar- 
tic pills,  some  of  each,  daily ;  pepsine  three  times  a 
day  before  eating,  and  bismuth  after  eating.  She 
took  nearly  fifty  dollars'  worth  each  of  pepsine  and 
bismuth.  She  had  10x12  blisters  on  the  abdomen, 
and  was  dry-cupped  twice,  seven  at  a  time.  In  No- 
vember she  had  another  doctor,  who  gave  her  olive 
oil  and  seidlitz  powders,  and  there  was  passed  a  large 
quantity  of  gall  secretions,  green  and  as  large  as  olives 
(inspissated  bile  ?),  after  which  she  was  somewhat  re- 
lieved. The  enlargement  of  the  liver  decreased  for  a 
short  time.  She  took  the  oil  and  seidlitz  powders 
several  times,  with  similar  results,  and  she  took  in  all 
twelve  large  bottles  of  oil.  She  then  took  steam  and 
tan  baths,  which  made  her  very  weak;  took  roots  and 
herbs,  but  still  she  was  failing.  Next  came  a  clair- 
voyant, who  "  saw  through  "  her,  and  said  there  was 
a  large  green  movable  ulcer  on  the  liver,  and  a  simi- 
lar ulcer  on  the  pit  of  the  stomach,  which  her  medi- 
cines would  relieve.  On  the  spleen  was  also  a  sac, 
filled  with  water;  but  that  would  pass  off. 

She  had  a  liniment  which  burned  her  fearfully,  and 
took  some  "  blood  purifier."  Another  doctor  was 
called  ;  he  examined  her  thoroughly,  and  looked  wise, 
but  could  not  decide  what  was  the  matter.  He  said 
it  was  not  really  liver  disease,  but  was  the  new  disease 
which  was  discovered  in  1864.  He  advised  her  to 
drink  salt  sea-water,  and,  if  not  too  expensive,  would 
advise  a  bath  of  sweet  oil,  lying  in  it  three  hours. 

About  this  time  her  sister,  living  in  the  West,  asked 


PACIFIC    HOMOEOPATHIC    MEDICAL    SOCIETY.        203 

her  physician,  Dr.  Rockwith,  what  he  thought  of  the 
case,  and  he  wrote  to  Dr.  David  Thayer,  of  Boston, 
and  Dr.  Thayer  advised  her  to  try  China  200.  This 
led  to  the  idea  of  trying  Homceopathy,  and  Dr.  Handt 
of  this  city  was  called  in  July,  1875.  He  used  several 
remedies,  tried  electricity,  and  finally  injected  morphine 
under  the  skin  at  the  time  the  chills  were  coming  on, 
which  would  always  shorten  and  relieve  the  pains  and 
chills.  I  was  called  in  consultation  after  he  had  been 
in  attendance  some  time.  After  careful  examination, 
I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  was  an  ulcerated 
liver  and  a  similar  condition  of  the  spleen.  I  advised 
the  use  of  China  30,  and  afterward  in  the  2Ooth.  I 
saw  the  lady  frequently,  and  in  fact,  by  request  of  the 
doctor,  virtually  took  charge  of  the  case.  The  con- 
stipation disappeared,  and  passages  were  had  daily, 
the  color  being  that  of  clay.  Very  few  changes  of 
remedies  were  made,  the  principal  besides  China  be- 
ing Arsenic,  Hepar  Sulph.  and  Megarrhiza  oregana. 
She  gradually  improved,  her  passages  were  frequently 
streaked  with  pus,  and  finally  an  abscess  pointed  un- 
der the  tenth  rib,  which  broke  and  for  quite  a  time 
kept  up  a  discharge  through  a  fistulous  canal,  un- 
doubtedly from  the  spleen.  After  the  discharge  from 
the  spleen  she  grew  better  more  rapidly,  and  now 
considers  herself  a  comparatively  well  woman,  is  a 
wonder  to  her  friends,  and  gladly  would  put  a  large 
feather  in  the  cap  of  Homoeopathy.  When  she  was 
taken  sick  she  weighed  225  pounds,  and  when  she 
first  began  Homoeopathic  treatment  weighed  122. 
She  has  since  then  gained  30  pounds.  For  two 
years  she  did  not  see  the  inside  of  her  kitchen,  but 
this  Spring  was  able  to  "  clean  house  "  as  well  as  any 
woman. 


2O4  TRANSACTIONS. 

From  the  character  of  the  symptoms  related  it  can 
very  well  be  seen  why  I  gave  the  China.  The  Hepar 
Sulph.  was  given  because  it  would  hasten  the  dis- 
charge of  the  pus,  and  empirically  I  gave  the  Meg- 
arrhiza  in  the  first  dilution  for  the  reason  of  its  sup- 
posed action  on  enlarged  spleens.  While  taking  the 
Megarrhiza  there  was  a  marked  change  in  the  color 
and  regularity  of  her  stools. 

After  she  began  to  improve,  one  or  two  doses  of 
Lycopodium  200  relieved  a  flatulency  and  the  feeling 
of  a  band  across  the  stomach. 

All  the  remedies  which  were  given  her,  except  the 
Megarrhiza,  were  in  the  3Oth  dilution,  or  above. 


LIST  OF  MEMBERS. 


J.  M.  SELFRIDGE,     - 
J.  N.  ECKEL, 
J.  F.  GEARY, 
J.  A.  ALBERTSON, 
H.  KNAPP, 
J.  S.  BEAKLEY, 
H.  H.  INGERSON, 
M.  T.  WILSON, 
G.  M.  PEASE, 

F.  H.  THOMAS, 
JOHN  J.  GUSHING, 

A.   LlLIENCRANTZ,       - 

L.  E.  CROSS, 
D.  M.  BROWN, 
W.  E.  LEDYARD, 
W.  A.  HUGHSON,     - 
GEORGE   H.  JENKS, 
LAURA  A.  BAI.LARD, 

G.  E.  DAVIS, 
GEO.  S.  BARROWS, 

I.  E.  NICHOLSON,     - 


Oakland. 
San  Francisco. 


Los  Angeles. 

Saucelito. 

Oakland. 

Stockton. 

Healdsburg. 

San  Francisco. 

Sacramento. 

San  Francisco. 


San  Jose. 
Oakland. 


INDEX. 


Abscess  of  Liver  and  Spleen,        -  -        2<DI 

^Esculus  Hippocastanum  for  Prolapsus  Ani,    -  29 

Annealed  Gold  Wire  for  Fractured  Jaw,  -                                                           i?3 
Annual  Meeting  1874, 

1875,  -•  60 

1876,  134 
Artificial  Aids  to  Labor^On  the  use  of,  -                                                            31 
Astragalus  Menziesii,  Proving  of,        -  J77 

Bright's  Disease,  Discussion  upon,  65 

........  .                              89 

Bureaus  for  1876-77,  -         '5? 

By-Laws,  9 

Clavicle,  Apparatus  for  Fracture  of,  49 

Climate  of  Colorado,  69 

"         of  Los  Angeles  County,    -  -         l22 

Colored  Glass,  Medical  use  of,  13-  l87 

Constitution,  7 

Epilepsy,  I25 

Eryodictyon  Glutinosum,  Proving  of,  -                                                    -         197 

Fractured  Clavicle,  New  apparatus  for,  49 

Jaw,  Annealed  Gold  Wire  for,  173 

Hemorrhage  During  Pregnancy,          -  IO7 

Hemorrhoids,  with  Prolapsus  Ani,  29 

Hydropathy  in  its  Relation  to  Homoeopathy,  "3 

Instruments  for  Staphylorraphy,     - 
Intermittent  Fever, 

Intussusception,  Discussion  upon,  °4 

--------  75 

Letter  from  Grass  Valley, 

Los  Angeles  County,  Climate  of, 

Medical  Use  of  Colored  Glass, 
Morbus  Brightii,  Discussion  upon,    - 

.....                .--  -          '  -                        »9 

Members,  List  of,        -            -  2O5 


2O8  INDEX. 

Ovarian  Diseases,  39 

Passage  of  Gravel  Through  the  Ureters,  167 

Podophyllin,  Accidental  Proving  of,  55 

Post  Climacteric  Pregnancy,  181 

Preliminary  Meetings,         -  5 

Prolapsus  Ani,  Hemorrhoids,  29 

Proving  of  Astragalus  Menziesii,  177 

"         of  Eryodictyon  Glutinosum,     -  197 

Relation  of  Homoeopathy  to  Pathology  and  Physiology,     -  160 

Retained  Placenta,       -  62 

Semi-annual  meeting  1875,  22 

Special  meeting,  February  23d,  1876.  130 

Typhoid  Fever,        -  119 

Vegetable  Food  for  Man,         -  99 
"  Yerba  Santa,"  Proving  of,                                                                             -         197 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  AT  LOS  ANGELES 

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